Ban to UN: Time running out for two-state solution

UN chief Ban Ki-moon tells the Security Council that time is running for a two-state solution, and lambastes both Israel and the Palestinians for the stalemate in peace talks.

“The failure of Israeli and Palestinian leaders to advance peace has created a vacuum. Extremist voices have filled that space,” Ban says, according to a statement released by his office.

“Late last month, I returned from my eleventh visit to Israel and Palestine as Secretary-General,” he tells the Council. “I carried a clear and consistent message to leaders on both sides: Time is running out.”

The UN chief singles out Israeli settlement construction, saying: “How can the systematic expansion of settlements … the taking of land for exclusive Israeli use … and the denial of Palestinian development be a response to violence?”

“Such policies will not bring the two-state solution closer to reality,” he says. “Such policies will not make Israelis safer or more secure.”

He also criticizes Palestinian violence and the failure to stop it. “Those responsible for recent terror attacks must be held accountable,” he says.

Turning to the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the Hamas terror group, Ban says: “Militant activity continues, undermining the fragile ceasefire and threatening to provoke another devastating escalation.”

He also condemns the donors who failed to make good on their promises to fund the rehabilitation of Gaza after the 2014 war. “Despite significant progress, tens of thousands of people are still displaced,” he says. “Families are forced to live without electricity for 12 to 18 hours per day. Unemployment remains staggering.

“Funds to rebuild Gaza remain elusive. I once again urge donors to fulfill their pledges made in Cairo.”

But, he adds, “long-term stability and sustainability for Gaza depends on the lifting of the crippling closures and a re-establishment of a single, legitimate Palestinian governing authority based on PLO principles.”