Robust actions called for Palestinian-Israeli issue

A Chinese envoy to the United Nations called on Thursday for strong action by the United Nations Security Council to address the Palestinian-Israeli issue and declared its unstinting support for the two-state solution in the turbulent region.

"The Security Council bears the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, and as such, must take robust actions to address the Palestinian-Israeli issue and reaffirm its unwavering support for a two-state solution," Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, said at a Security Council meeting.

The Palestinian-Israeli issue has been on the UN agenda for more than 70 years. Each time the Palestinian-Israeli situation is thrown into turmoil, it serves as an alarm bell for international rule of law, weighs on human conscience, and tests the effectiveness of multilateral mechanisms, he said.

"The latest round of conflict reminds us, once again, that we cannot afford to allow the Middle East process to go off the rails, or to push the question of Palestine to the margins, or to overlook the suffering of the Palestinian people and their well-deserved rights, or to forget the many binding resolutions adopted by the Security Council, or to shirk the responsibility the Security Council must undertake," he said.

As Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out at the May 16 Security Council emergency meeting, an enduring settlement can only be achieved on the basis of a two-state solution. Only when the question of Palestine is resolved in a comprehensive, just and sustainable way, can lasting peace and security be truly achieved in the Middle East, said Zhang.

UN probe

The UN Human Rights Council on Thursday agreed to launch an international investigation into alleged crimes committed during the 11-day conflict between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza.

The independent investigation will have a broad mandate to look into all alleged violations, not just in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, but also in Israel during hostilities that were halted by a cease-fire on May 21.

Michelle Bachelet, the UN high commissioner for human rights, told the council earlier that deadly Israeli strikes on Gaza might constitute war crimes and Hamas had violated international humanitarian law by firing rockets into Israel.

Israel rejected the resolution adopted by the Geneva forum and said it would not cooperate.

Hundreds of Israeli airstrikes killed at least 270 people in Gaza and injured more than 1,900. The Israeli military put Israel's death toll at 13.

A spokesman for Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, called the group's actions "legitimate resistance" and called for "immediate steps to punish" Israel.

Israel's main ally, the United States, said it deeply regretted the decision of the forum, where it has observer status and no vote.

European countries were split, with Austria, Britain and Germany voting against. France and the Netherlands abstained.

Liu Yinmeng in Los Angeles, agencies and Xinhua contributed to this story.