Kofi Annan's Letter to Sharon
(from the New York Times, March 19, 2002)
I have followed the escalation of violence in Israel and the
occupied Palestinian territory over the past week with increasing distress. I
believe that the latest round of violence -- and the scores of tragic and
meaningless deaths that have resulted from it -- have confirmed that the only
path to security, for Israelis and Palestinians alike, is the resumption of
negotiations toward a durable peace settlement. Any other response to the events
of recent days is sure to elicit only further pain and further bitterness. In
this connection, I feel obliged to call your attention to disturbing patterns in
the treatment of civilians and humanitarian relief workers by the Israeli
Defense Forces . . . Judging from the means and methods employed by the I.D.F.
-- F-16 fighter bombers, helicopter and naval gunships, missiles and bombs of
heavy tonnage -- the fighting has come to resemble all-out conventional warfare.
In the process, hundreds of innocent noncombatant civilians -- men, women and
children -- have been injured or killed, and many buildings and homes have been
damaged or destroyed. Tanks have been deployed in densely populated refugee
camps and in towns and villages; and heavy explosives have been dropped mere
meters from schools where thousands of children were in attendance, and have
even caused severe damage to a school for the blind.
I am especially dismayed by the I.D.F.'s failure to protect and respect
ambulances and medical personnel. In recent days, several medical relief workers
were killed when Israeli soldiers fired on clearly marked ambulances, including
Mr. Kamal Hamdan, an Unrwa (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) staff
member. In addition, Israeli forces repeatedly declined to grant medical
personnel access to conflict areas to treat and evacuate the wounded, despite
formal protests from Unrwa and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
I am also troubled by the repeated and, to the best of my knowledge, unfounded
and unsubstantiated allegations by Israeli government spokespersons that
ambulances have been used to smuggle Palestinian militants and weapons. These
allegations can only result in further damage to medical workers and further
impede their vital mission.
Israel is fully entitled to defend itself against terror. But this right does
not discharge it of its obligation to respect the fundamental principles and
rules of international humanitarian law and the law of armed conflict with
respect to the treatment and protection of civilians in occupied territories,
the protection to be accorded facilities such as hospitals, schools, and the Red
Crescent emblem, and proportionality in the means and methods of warfare. As I
am sure you will agree, these rules are to the benefit of all concerned and
warrant scrupulous compliance.
It is incumbent on all parties to take urgent steps to de-escalate the level of
violence. Israel should contribute to this effort by ensuring that the I.D.F.
uses only weapons and methods that minimize the danger to the lives and property
of Palestinian civilians, in conformity with its humanitarian obligations and as
recommended by the Sharm el Sheik Fact-Finding Committee almost a year ago.
I also request that you initiate a full investigation into the incidents last
week involving I.D.F. fire at ambulances and medical personnel, and that you
take immediate steps to ensure that they are not repeated in the future.
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