UNSC: JULY MIDDLE EAST BRIEFING/CONSULTATIONS

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TAGS: PREL PGOV UNSC
SUBJECT: UNSC: JULY MIDDLE EAST BRIEFING/CONSULTATIONS

REF: STATE 102876


1. Summary: In his July Middle East Security Council
briefing, UN Special Coordinator (UNSCO) Michael Williams
highlighted both the positive and negative developments in
the region over the past month. Positive developments
include the release of BBC journalist Alan Johnston, renewed
contact between Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas,
the release of Palestinian prisoners and tax revenues, the
appointment of Tony Blair as Quartet Representative and
President Bush's proposal for an international conference.
Negative developments included increased violence,
intra-Palestinian political paralysis, and looming
humanitarian problems in Gaza. Williams implored Israel,
Egypt and the entire international community to "explore all
possible options to operate the crossings" in Gaza,
particularly the Karni crossing, failing which he asserted
would send Gaza into a "downward economic spiral" leading to
"extensive hardship."


2. In the closed consultations that followed the briefing,
nearly every delegation expressed satisfaction with the
positive developments in his report, voiced concern at the
negative elements, and stressed the need to build on current
momentum. Russia and Qatar, however, warned that excluding
Hamas from the political scene would be "counterproductive,"
and Indonesia stressed the importance of not taking sides in
internecine Palestinian political disputes, while South
Africa called the economic boycott of Hamas "collective
punishment" of the Palestinian people. On Lebanon, UNSCO
Williams stressed the need for member states to help Lebanese
parties to reach consensus to end political deadlock there,
and for Israel to cease its overflights of Lebanese airspace.
End Summary.

Williams: Positive and Negative Developments
--------------


3. In noting positive regional developments, Williams called
attention to the recent meetings between Prime Minister
Olmert and President Abbas, Israel's release of Palestinian
prisoners and tax revenues, and Palestinian Prime Minister
Fayyad's recent payment of salaries to 160,000 PA employees.
He also praised the appointment of former British Prime
Minister Tony Blair as the Quartet Representative to the
Middle East, and President Bush's July 16 address on the
Middle East, specifically lauding the President's proposal to
hold a conference this fall. Williams welcomed Norway's
proposal to re-convene the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee to meet
on the margins of the General Assembly meeting in New York in
September. And he reaffirmed the government of President
Abbas and PM Fayyad as the only legitimate government of the
Palestinian people.


4. On a less positive note, Williams also discussed the
continuing problems plaguing the region: Hamas' violent
persecution of political opponents in Gaza, Israel's arrest
operations in the West Bank, and the Palestinians' continued
rocket attacks, many of them claimed by Hamas, against both
Israel and the crossings into Gaza. Williams called on
Israel specifically to release the 45 Hamas MPs that it has
arrested over the past several months.


5. On the humanitarian front, Williams stressed the need to
reopen the Gaza crossings so as to prevent a complete
collapse of the Gaza economy. He said that while 88 per cent
of the basic needs of the Gaza population were being met, the
situation had the potential to deteriorate very quickly, and
that although there was not yet a humanitarian disaster, it
is possible for one to develop extremely rapidly. Moreover,
he said, the closure of the Karni crossing -- and the
attendant inability to import industrial raw materials into
Gaza -- has led to tens of thousands of lay-offs, and the
stagnation of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of UN and
privately-funded factories and construction projects.


6. On Lebanon, Williams noted the protracted instability
there, and called on the Lebanese to embrace French and Arab
League mediation efforts, and attempt to come to a consensus
to move the political process forward. He also called on
Israel to stop its overflights of Lebanese territory.

Council Consultations: Humanitarian Issue, Peace Initiatives
-------------- --------------


7. In the closed consultations that followed, all
delegations supported Williams' concerns about the
humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Delegations
generally expressed satisfaction that the humanitarian
lifeline was functioning effectively, but feared that the
devastating impact of the Karni closure on Gaza's export
industries (agriculture, textiles, etc.) could soon lead to a

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collapse of the economy there. Italy worried that since
Williams reported that only 88 per cent of the basic needs of
the Palestinians were being met, that 12 per cent of the
population was without their basic daily requirements. The
general consensus that the crossings need to be functioning
was underscored by South Africa, Ghana, and China, all of
which noted the need to implement the 2005 Agreement on
Movement and Access (AMA). Additionally, Qatar and Slovakia
emphasized that the Palestinian people should not be
"punished" for the actions of Hamas, while South Africa
argued that the international boycott of Hamas amounted to
"collective punishment" of the Palestinian people.


8. Most delegations, including Russia, Belgium, France,
Slovakia, Peru, the UK, and China explicitly expressed their
support for all three peace initiatives currently on the
table -- Tony Blair's mission on behalf of the Quartet, the
Arab League initiative, and President Bush's proposal for a
conference this fall, though many expressed a desire to know
more specifics about President Bush's proposed agenda.
Italy, supported by Belgium stressed the importance of
working simultaneously on two tracks: the long term
discussion of the "political horizon," the content of which
everyone is aware, and the short term effort on the "building
blocks" that are necessary to implement the long term vision
for Israel and the Palestinians. In this regard Belgium
noted the promise of the Arab peace initiative, specifically
called for further engagement on this front, and expressed
its desire to see Saudi Arabia pulled into the process.
Indonesia added that any conference should include "all
parties" to the conflict.

Engagement with Hamas
--------------


9. Almost all delegations expressed support for a solution
to the intra-Palestinian conflict that maintains the unity of
the West Bank and Gaza, with Abbas as the legitimate head of
the Palestinian Authority. France, Belgium, Russia, Ghana,
and Qatar explicitly stressed the need to work for
"Palestinian unity". They were joined by Indonesia, who not
only expressed support for Palestinian unity, but also called
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict the "mother of all
conflicts" in the Middle East, whose solution would do much
to advance the cause of regional peace. France also noted
that it would like to examine the concept of an international
force "at the appropriate moment."


10. However, in addition to the calls of support for the
government of Mahmoud Abbas, some delegations either
implicitly or explicitly called for engagement with Hamas.
In this vein, Congo, while supporting Abbas, also noted that
the international community shouldn't necessarily exclude
Hamas, which "has support" in the population. Russia also
argued that maintaining the economic boycott and exclusion of
Hamas from the government would be "counterproductive"
because Hamas continues to remain an "influential political
force" and has the support of much of the population.
Meanwhile, South Africa and Indonesia argued that the
international community should not take sides in an internal
political dispute, and joined Qatar in its assertion that
Palestinian violence against Israel was a natural response to
occupation, which in the South African and Qatari view is the
root cause of the conflict. The US and UK noted they are now
providing Abbas' government with direct assistance of $144
million and $6 million respectively. China was the only
country that explicitly called upon Israel and Syria to
resume negotiations with a mind towards peace.


11. Per Department guidance, Amb. Khalilzad related the
substance of President Bush's speech from July 16. He called
upon Israel to implement its Road Map commitments, and upon
the Palestinians to choose the way of peace and independence
represented by President Abbas and PM Fayyad rather than the
way of violence and war represented by Hamas. He commented
that the Arab peace initiative was a positive development,
and that we supported immediate efforts to alleviate the
humanitarian situation in Gaza. Amb. Khalilzad further
stressed the need to turn the current opportunities for
progress into realities.

Lebanon
--------------


12. On Lebanon, most delegations referenced the comments
they made last week during Security Council consultations on
UNSCR 1701 and the report of the LIBAT commission. Qatar
explicitly condemned Fatah al Islam's actions in the Nahr
al-Bared camp, and denounced any attempts to undermine the
stability of Lebanon. Other countries, including Indonesia
and China, joined in these sentiments, calling for a return
to the process of national consensus-building, while France

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deplored efforts to instigate a "war of others" on Lebanese
soil, and Peru articulated its concern with the proliferation
of armed groups there.
KHALILZAD