GCC affirms support for efforts to reinforce rule of law

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries affirmed their support for all efforts and activities to reinforce the rule of law in order to achieve justice and contribute to realizing the goals and objectives of the United Nations.
This came in the statement delivered by Abdulaziz Fadala Mubarak Al Sulaiti, the Third Secretary of the Permanent Mission of the State of Qatar to the United Nations, on behalf of the GCC countries, before the United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee meeting on the item: The rule of law at the national and international levels, at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
The statement stressed the belief of the GCC countries that the principle of the rule of law is the fundamental pillar for the success of international efforts in achieving the goals and objectives for which the United Nations was established, and the main criterion for commitment to the UN Charter as it emphasizes equality, mutual respect and cooperation between states, and the establishment of a rules-based system in managing international relations, that is free from double standards in the application of international law, in order to achieve international peace and security.
The international community has adopted many international charters and declarations that emphasize the importance of the rule of law, including the 2005 World Summit Declaration, which stressed that the rule of law is an essential element of peaceful coexistence, conflict prevention, peacekeeping, conflict resolution, peace-building and ensuring human rights, the statement noted.
The international community affirmed in the Declaration Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations its commitment to the provisions of international law and ensuring justice. The purposes and principles of the Charter and international law remain eternal and universal purposes and principles that are indispensable for a more peaceful, prosperous and just world, the statement added.
The GCC countries take into consideration what was included in the Secretary-Generals report contained in document (A/79/117) on strengthening and coordinating United Nations activities in the field of rule of law, and what it included regarding the possibility of using digital technologies and digital transformation to access justice services, crime prevention, and the rule of law, in addition to the Secretary-Generals initiative on the new vision of the rule of law as proposed in our common agenda, which focuses on people, and considers the rule of law as a means and an end in preventing conflicts and establishing peace, because it addresses the injustice and inequality that fundamentally fuel conflicts, and provides protection for civilians in crisis situations and beyond, in addition to following up on efforts to strengthen the links between the rule of law and technological developments and their consideration of human rights and other fundamental freedoms, and access to justice.
The GCC countries continue their commitment and efforts to promoting the principle of the rule of law at all levels. At the national level, the GCC countries attach special importance to strengthening national institutions concerned with the rule of law, based on international standards and norms. Government institutions are keen to adhere to the rule of law and increase community awareness of this principle, as it is the basic factor for achieving equality and justice for all and promoting good governance. The GCC countries have paid great attention to ensuring integration between national laws and international instruments in the field of the rule of law, the statement stressed.
In continuation of the ongoing efforts to strengthen the commitments and efforts to promote the rule of law at the national and international levels, the GCC countries condemn in the strongest terms the Israeli bombing of hospitals, schools and other places where unarmed civilians have taken refuge in Gaza, as well as the recent attacks against unarmed civilians in Gaza and the West Bank, which constitute a blatant violation of the provisions of international law and international humanitarian law. The GCC countries warn against the danger of adopting a policy of collective punishment, including the killing of a number of UNRWA employees in Israeli raids on Gaza, and targeting other humanitarian relief teams. They considered that forcing civilians to flee or seek refuge in neighboring countries constitutes a violation of international laws, and is likely to exacerbate the effects of the ongoing confrontations in the occupied Palestinian territory and multiply the suffering of the Palestinian people, the statement said.
The statement urged the international community to take urgent action to pressure the Israeli authorities, as the occupying power, to allow international organizations to bring medical and food aid into Gaza, and to evacuate injured civilians. It also affirmed the GCC countries’ support for the brotherly Lebanese people, with all their components, at this critical stage, and called for intensifying international and regional efforts to provide urgent humanitarian support to Lebanon to alleviate the suffering of civilians and protect them from any serious repercussions.
The statement noted the GCC countries’ warning against the serious repercussions which effects are not limited to the region alone, rather extend to a wider circle. They call on all parties to stop the fighting, de-escalate, exercise maximum restraint, spare civilians the consequences of the fighting, protect the region from slipping into a wider circle of violence, and give priority to dialogue.
The GCC countries stress the need to implement resolution (A/RES/ES-10/24) issued by the General Assembly 10th emergency special session regarding the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, the main judicial body of the United Nations, in which the court confirmed that Israel’s continued abuse of its status as an occupying power, through annexation and control of the occupied Palestinian territory and the continued frustration of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, violates the basic principles of international law. Israel has no right to sovereignty over any part of the occupied Palestinian territory or to exercise sovereign powers over it, and its security concerns cannot prevail over the principle of prohibiting the seizure of territory by force, the statement added.
The GCC countries affirmed that the continued complete disregard and violation by the Israeli government of its obligations under the UN Charter, international law and relevant resolutions seriously threatens regional and international peace and stability. They demanded that Israel comply with all its legal obligations, and stop all new settlement activities, and that all states and international organizations, including the United Nations, are obligated not to recognize the legality of the situation created by Israel’s illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territory, and not to provide assistance in maintaining the status-quo, the statement said.