Annan calls for increased aid to alleviate Palestinian economic hardship
Deteriorating economic conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory have generated diminishing support for the peace process there, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan warns in a new report, calling for greater international assistance to bolster United Nations relief efforts in the area, reported the U.N. news center.
"It is not possible to restore security and stability without a resumption of political activity leading towards a just settlement and of economic activity leading to an improvement of living conditions," he notes, reiterating his call for implementation of the recommendations of the fact-finding committee led by former United States Senator George Mitchell.
The report provides details on the re-orientation of UN assistance efforts since the crisis broke out last September.
"Development-oriented initiatives became extremely difficult to implement in the context of violence and lack of freedom of movement while, at the same time, the immediate needs on the ground called for a rapid response," Annan notes. In response, UN agencies worked to meet the urgent needs of the Palestinian people, who "found every aspect of their lives disrupted."
Stressing the heightened need for increased activities and services provided by the UN and other organizations in the occupied Palestinian territory, the Secretary-General calls upon the international community to support aid programs, especially the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which provides "vital services" to hundreds of thousands of people.
"The dramatic deterioration of the economic and the humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory highlights the urgent need to find a peaceful solution of the ongoing crisis," writes the Secretary-General. He strongly urges the parties to end the current cycle of violence and to resume a meaningful political process on the basis of UN resolutions, leading to lasting peace and reconciliation.
