U.N. stymied on reacting to Jericho raid
Security Council's efforts to draft statement on Israel's raid of Jericho prison halted after Palestinians offer last minute amendment
U.N. Security Council efforts to produce a statement on Israel's raid in Jericho this week came to an abrupt halt on Thursday when Palestinians offered a last minute amendment, a British diplomat said.
Israel seized six men from prison during the operation in the West Bank on Tuesday, five of them belonging to a terror group that claimed responsibility for killing Israeli cabinet minister Rehavam Zeevi in 2001. The sixth is accused of organizing an arms shipment.
The draft council statement, negotiated over three days, called on Israel to withdraw all forces from Jericho.
It also expressed "grave concern" over the violence in Jericho, West Bank and the Gaza Strip, in which several people, including Palestinian officers, were killed, and foreigners were kidnapped.
"As we entered the council chamber to confirm our agreement, a last minute amendment was proposed by Qatar on behalf of the Palestinian Authority and unfortunately it was not possible on the spot to reach agreement," said Adam Thomson, Britain's deputy U.N. ambassador.
But the Palestinian envoy to the United Nation, Riyad Mansour, told reporters the word "jail" was missing from the statement, which was "the point of the whole exercise."
He said the statement should have called for the release from the Israelis "of all of the prisoners kidnapped from Jericho."
Last minutes changes in a council statement, which requires the approval of all 15 members, are usually difficult because governments may have to send the new wording to their capitals for approval.
Thomson said it might be possible to reach agreement "but at the present it is quite clear that the Palestinian authorities are not quite ready to do so."
He also said it had been impossible to persuade Qatar, the only Arab nation on the council, to include a reference in the text as to why Britain withdrew its monitors from the prison.
Earlier, Mansour said the United States and Britain appeared to have "have collaborated with the Israelis, allowing them to come storm the prison only after their withdrawal."
