Holy See Decries Lack of Will for Mideast Peace

(January 17, 2009) There are so many failed efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East because there is a lack of political will to succeed, says the Holy See. This was affirmed today by Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, at the U.N. General Assembly 10th emergency special session on "Illegal Israeli Actions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the Rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory." The archbishop began by expressing the delegation's solidarity with the civilians in Gaza and some Israeli cities, which "bear the brunt of a cruel conflict." He urged that the Security Council resolution from a week ago, "which calls for an immediate and enduring ceasefire as well as for an unimpeded humanitarian assistance," to be implemented fully. And the prelate lamented the failure "from all sides to respect the distinction of civilians from military targets." Archbishop Migliore noted that the troubled history of the last 60 years of co-existence between the Israelis and Palestinians has included a long succession of conflicts, but also of dialogue. "Unfortunately, however, the many efforts to establish peace between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples have so far failed," he stated. Thus, the prelate said, the United Nations faces the "weighty task to get the parties to respect the ceasefire, pave the way to negotiations and agreements between them and ensure humanitarian assistance.""In particular," he concluded, "this General Assembly can assist the parties in the conflict to discover new patterns for establishing peace, patterns based on mutual acceptance and cooperation amid diversity."