United Nations General Assembly Resolution 3240
November 29, 1974
A
The General Assembly
Guided by the purposes and principles of
the Charter of the United Nations as well as the principles and
provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Bearing in mind the provisions of the
Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons
in Time of War, of 12 August 1949,1/ as well as of other
relevant conventions and regulations,
Recalling its resolutions on the
subject, as well as those adopted by the Security council, the
commission on Human Rights and other United Nations bodies
concerned and by specialized agencies,
Considering that the implementation of
the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 cannot and should not be
left open in a situation involving foreign military occupation and
the rights of the civilian population of those territories,
Deploring the continued refusal by
Israel to allow the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli
Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Population of the
Occupied Territories access to the occupied territories,
Having considered the report of the
Special Committee,2/
1. Commends the Special Committee to
Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the
Population of the Occupied Territories for its efforts in
performing the tasks assigned to it by the General Assembly;
2. Calls upon Israel to allow the
Special committee access to the occupied territories;
3. Expresses the gravest concern at the
continued and persistent disregard by Israel of the Geneva
Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time
of War, of 12 August 1949, and other applicable international
instruments, in particular the following violations:
(a) The annexation of parts of the
occupied territories;
(b) The establishment of Israeli
settlements therein and the transfer of an alien population
thereto;
(c) The destruction and demolition of
Arab houses, villages and towns;
(d) The confiscation and expropriation
of Arab property in the occupied territories and all other
transactions for the acquisition of land involving the Israeli
authorities, institutions or nationals on the one hand, and the
inhabitants or institutions of the occupied territories on the
other;
(e) The evacuation, deportation,
expulsion, displacement and transfer of Arab inhabitants of the
occupied territories, and the denial of their right to return;
(f) Mass arrests, administrative
detention and ill-treatment of the Arab population;
(g) The pillaging of archaeological and
cultural property;
(h) The interference with religious
freedom and practices, as well as family rights and customs;
(i) The illegal exploitation of the
natural wealth, resources and population of the occupied
territories;
4. Declares that those policies of
Israel constitute not only a direct contravention to, and
violation of, the purposes and principles of the Charter of the
United Nations, in particular the principles of sovereignty and
territorial integrity, the principles and provisions of the
applicable international law concerning occupation and the basic
human rights of the people, but also an impediment to the
establishment of a just and lasting peace;
5. Reaffirms that all measures taken by
Israel to change the physical character, demographic composition,
institutional structure or status of the occupied territories, or
any part thereof, are null and void;
6. Reaffirms further that Israel's
policy of settling parts of its population and new immigrants in
the occupied territories is a flagrant violation of the Geneva
Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time
of War and of the relevant United Nations resolutions, and urges
all States to refrain from any action which Israel will exploit in
carrying out its policy of colonizing the occupied territories;
7. Demands that Israel desist forthwith
from the annexation and colonization of the occupied Arab
territories as well as from all the policies and practices
referred to in paragraph 3 above;
8. Reiterates its call upon all States,
international organizations and specialized agencies not to
recognize any changes carried out by Israel in the occupied
territories and to avoid actions, including actions in the field
of aid, which might be used by Israel in its pursuit of the
policies and practices referred to in the present resolution;
9. Requests the Special Committee,
pending the early termination of the Israeli occupation, to
continue to investigate Israeli policies and practices in the Arab
territories occupied by Israel since 1967, to consult, as
appropriate, with the International Committee of the Red Cross in
order to ensure the safeguarding of the welfare and human rights
of the population of the occupied territories, and to report to
the Secretary-General as soon as possible and whenever the need
arises thereafter;
10. Requests the Secretary-General:
(a) To render all necessary facilities
to the Special Committee, including those required for its visits
to the occupied territories with a view to investigating Israeli
policies and practices referred to in the present resolution;
(b) To ensure the widest circulation of
the reports of the Special Committee, and of information regarding
its activities and findings, by all means available through the
Office of Public Information of the Secretariat;
(c) To report to the General Assembly at
its thirtieth session on the tasks entrusted to him;
11. Decides to include in the
provisional agenda of its thirtieth session the item entitled
"Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices
Affecting the Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied
Territories".
B
The General Assembly,
Affirming that the promotion of respect
for the obligations arising from the Charter of the United Nations
and other instruments and rules of international law is among the
basic purposes and principles of the United Nations,
Bearing in mind the provisions of the
Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons
in Time of War, of 12 August 1949,1/
Recalling that Israel and those Arab
States whose territories have been occupied by Israel since June
1967 are parties to that Convention,
Reaffirming that States parties to that
Convention undertake, in accordance with article 1 thereof, not
only to respect but also to ensure respect for the Convention in
all circumstances,
1. Reaffirms, that the Geneva Convention
relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of
12 August 1949, is applicable to the Arab territories occupied by
Israel since 1967;
2. Calls once more upon Israel to
respect and to comply with the provisions of that Convention in
the Arab territories occupied by Israel;
3. Urges all States parties to that
Convention to exert all efforts in order to ensure respect for and
compliance with the provisions thereof in the Arab territories
occupied by Israel.
C
The General Assembly,
Having considered the report of the
Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the
Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied Territories,2/
in particular section V thereof concerning the destruction of the
town of Kuneitra,
Recalling that the Geneva Convention
relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of
12 August 1949,1/ provides that any destruction by the
occupying Power of real or personal property belonging
individually or collectively to private persons, to the State, to
other public authorities or to social or co-operative
organizations is prohibited,
Noting the Special Committee's
deep-seated conviction that the Israeli forces and the Israeli
occupying authorities were responsible for the deliberate and
total devastation of Kuneitra, in violation of article 53 of the
Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 and under article 147 thereof,
Noting further the Special Committee's
opinion that the gravity of the circumstances would justify the
appointment of a commission to study the legal consequences of the
devastation of Kuneitra, particularly within the context of
articles 53 and 147 of the Geneva Convention, bearing in mind the
provisions of article 6 (b) of the Charter of the
International Military Tribunal of Nuremberg,3/ confirmed
by the General Assembly in its resolution 95 (I) of 11 December
1946,
1. Endorses the conclusion of the
Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the
Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied Territories that
Israel is responsible for the destruction and devastation of the
town of Kuneitra;
2. Regards Israel's deliberate
destruction and devastation of the town of Kuneitra as a grave
breach of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of
Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, and condemns
Israel for such acts;
3. Requests the Special Committee, with
the assistance of experts, designated if necessary in consultation
with the Secretary-General, to undertake a survey of the
destruction in Kuneitra and to assess the nature, extent and value
of the damage caused by such destruction;
4. Requests the Secretary-General to make available to the
Special Committee all the facilities necessary in the performance
of its task and to report to the General Assembly at its thirtieth
session.
* * *
1/ United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973,
p. 287.
2/ A/9817.
3/
Source: The United Nations.
|