NEW YORK, December 18, 2025 (WAFA) — The United Nations General Assembly held a high-level meeting today to mark the 65th anniversary of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, with broad participation from member states.
The opening session featured remarks from the President of the General Assembly, the President of the Economic and Social Council, and the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support, followed by statements from several countries, including Palestine, represented by Palestine’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Riyad Mansour.
In his speech, Mansour stated that the declaration was not merely a historical document but enshrined a binding natural law affirming that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. He emphasized that the right to self-determination is central to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and is one of the most decisive principles in the international system.
Mansour noted that for many countries, the declaration marked a historic moment that contributed to achieving their freedom and independence, while for the Palestinian people, it remains an unfulfilled promise, delayed for decades and resulting in unbearable humanitarian consequences.
He added that the declaration’s words still resonate in the occupied Palestinian territories and among millions of Palestinians in the diaspora, serving as a reminder of ongoing injustice and the enduring belief that freedom will ultimately prevail.
Mansour stressed that the declaration affirms the right of all peoples to self-determination and considers subjugation under foreign control a violation of fundamental human rights, contrary to the UN Charter, undermining international peace and cooperation.
In this context, he referred to the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in 2024, which confirmed that the right to self-determination under foreign occupation constitutes a peremptory norm of international law, and that Israel’s practices of annexation and imposing permanent control over the occupied Palestinian territory render its presence illegal.
He called for the immediate end of this illegal colonial occupation, affirming that the Palestinian people remain at the UN’s threshold, awaiting the achievement of their freedom and independence like all other peoples.
Mansour concluded by asserting that the time for a free Palestine has long arrived, and that the Palestinian people must take their rightful place among the nations as a free people exercising their inalienable right to self-determination.
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