NEW YORK/OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, 1 December — Saudi Arabia yesterday denounced the state terrorism practiced by Israel on unarmed Palestinian civilians and said its killing of Palestinians, destruction of their properties and restriction of their movement were a clear violation of international law.
Addressing the UN General Assembly, Fowzi Shubokshi, the Kingdom’s permanent representative to the United Nations, welcomed US President George W. Bush’s statement that the violence in Palestine was the responsibility of all, not a single party.
"Since the establishment of Israel, the Middle East has not enjoyed peace, due to its continued occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories," he said. He emphasized the need for the peaceful co-existence of Palestine and Israel as two independent states. He also called for the resumption of the Middle East peace talks to ensure the return of Palestinian refugees to their homeland and establish an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Meanwhile, US envoy Anthony Zinni accused Palestinians yesterday of trying to derail his Middle East peace mission, but vowed not to be deterred by a suicide bombing which killed three Israelis on a bus. Zinni said he would persevere with his efforts to broker a lasting cease-fire after 14 months of Israeli-Palestinian violence despite Thursday’s attack in northern Israel.
"The groups that do this are clearly trying to make my mission fail," Zinni, a retired Marine Corps general, told reporters after talks with Israeli President Moshe Katsav. "I am determined not to let that happen...I am not committed to work for words. I am committed to work for actions on the ground," Zinni said.
