"Heartened and Relieved" While Remaining "Seized of the Matter"
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was "heartened and relieved" that the Security Council passed a resolution on Gaza. It takes so little to make the man happy. He told the Security Council, "Your decision signals the will of the international community. It must be fully respected by all parties to this conflict." Excuse our skepticism.
Perhaps because the resolution did not actually require action to enforce its vapid posturing, the Bush Administration felt an abstention rather than a veto would do no harm. We strongly disagree; the United States should veto any and all vapid resolutions lest the Security Council begin to believe anyone important takes it seriously.
The key points and our notes:
"Expressing grave concern at the escalation of violence and the deterioration of the situation, in particular the resulting heavy civilian casualties since the refusal to extend the period of calm; and emphasising that the Palestinian and Israeli civilian populations must be protected..."
"The refusal to extent the period of calm." Note the passive voice, as if it was a disembodied action. It was Hamas that refused and simultaneous with its announced intention to resume the war, actually resumed the war. Israel was attacked and has the right of self-defense - the moral equivalence is unseemly (not unusual for the UN, but reason enough to ignore it).
"1. Stresses the urgency of and calls for an immediate, durable and fully respected ceasefire, leading to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza."
This one is simple. Israel has been suffering rocket attacks since 2005 and is taking legitimate military action to restore status quo ante - no rockets. The fastest way to affect that would be for Hamas to stop shooting rockets into Israel.
"6. Calls upon Member States to intensify efforts to provide arrangements and guarantees in Gaza in order to sustain a durable ceasefire and calm, including to prevent illicit trafficking in arms and ammunition and to ensure the sustained re-opening of the crossing points on the basis of the 2005 Agreement on Movement and Access between the Palestinian Authority and Israel."
That agreement failed shortly after signing because of Hamas terrorism designed to ensure that the crossing points are open only to bring in humanitarian aid under its control. On the other hand, the fact that this section only calls on Member State to "intensify efforts" and does not call on them to actually DO anything (such as to create an international peacekeeping force) is a plus.
"8. Calls for renewed and urgent efforts by the parties and the international community to achieve a comprehensive peace based on the vision of a region where two democratic States, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace with secure and recognised borders.
There are currently three states/entities and three governments between the Jordan and the Mediterranean with no real prospect of creating two. There are four states/entities in the space of the old British Mandate for Palestine. Only one is democratic and only one is entitled by UN Security Council Resolution to "secure and recognized borders, free from threats or acts of war." That would be Israel.
"10. Decides to remain seized of the matter."
A sop to its own conscience. The Security Council appears to believe that being "seized by the matter" is the same as actually doing something about the matter. The people of Darfur, we suspect, are not comforted by the fact that the Security Council is also "seized by" their plight. On the other hand, when the Council actually decides to do something, rather than just think something, the result is often the opposite of helpful, so perhaps it is better that they just think.
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