During the debate on the item of Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arab inhabitants of the Occupied Territories, in the framework of the United Nations Fourth Committee, the Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, Ambassador Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, expressed his concern, dismay and shock at the serious events that have taken place in the Middle East over the past year, while emphasizing that the current situation is the result of 76 years of Israeli practices of illegal occupation and colonization, as well as the continued disregard for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and international law.
“It is imperative to stop the genocide now. We reiterate our call for an end to double standards, selectivity and political manipulation that undermine the cause of international peace and security," he said.
Regarding the situation in the occupied Syrian Golan, Soberón Guzmán pointed out that after almost six decades of occupation, Israel continues to disregard the Security Council resolution demanding its withdrawal from the Syrian Golan, while ignoring Security Council Resolution 497, adopted in 1981.
The Cuban Ambassador reiterated that any measure or action taken by the Israeli government to alter the legal, physical and demographic conditions, as well as the institutional structure of the occupied Syrian Golan, including any action to exercise its jurisdiction and administration in that territory, is a violation of international law and has no legal effect.
In this context, the Permanent Representative of Cuba reiterated the unwavering solidarity of the Greater Antilles with the Palestinian and Arab peoples; reaffirmed its full support for the accession of Palestine as a full member of the Organization; advocated a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on a two-State solution; and expressed Cuba's determination to continue to demand Israel's full and unconditional withdrawal from the Syrian Golan and all occupied Arab territories.