Tuesday, April 19, 2016, New York, NY … In remarks to the leadership of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations at its General Meeting, Ambassador Danny Danon, Israel’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN), briefed the group on the latest challenges facing Israel at the UN and noted some successes, as well.
Ambassador Danon pointed out that in 2015 there were twenty-two resolutions condemning Israel in the General Assembly and not one resolution condemning Syria. He also noted that in the last four months alone there were twelve resolutions condemning terrorism, none of which mentioned the hundreds of terror attacks in Israel, the thirty-four victims who died or the more than 400 wounded. He added that despite the one-sided atmosphere toward Israel, there have been some notable successes for Israel in the international body, particularly related to Israel’s world class expertise in agricultural technology and sustainable development.
Amb. Danon detailed the ongoing efforts by the Palestinians to garner support for one-sided resolutions against Israel in the Security Council, including a Palestinian drafted resolution condemning Israel for building in Judea and Samaria. Discussing an initiative of New Zealand calling for Israel and the Palestinian Authority to resume peace negotiations, the Ambassador reiterated that Israel is prepared to negotiate directly with the Palestinians at any time and that such resolutions are unnecessary and counterproductive. In addition, he expressed Israel’s outrage over the recent UN Human Rights Council resolution calling for the creation of an official UN database creating a “blacklist” of countries doing business in East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights and Judea and Samaria.
With all of the unjust attacks Israel constantly faces at the UN, Amb. Danon spoke with great pride about the two recent victories by the Israeli delegation. Among these, the decision of the UN to recognize Yom Kippur as an official holiday of the UN and the General Assembly adoption of a resolution proposed by Israel dealing with agricultural technology that received 146 votes.
Amb. Danon credited the victories to strong support from the U.S. delegation and the steadfast commitment and hard work of the Conference of Presidents and the entire American Jewish community on behalf of Israel.
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