In 1949, with the admission of Israel’s membership in the UN by the UN Security Council resolution 69 and the UN General Assembly resolution 273, the territories of the Palestinian state and the City of Jerusalem automatically admitted as members to the UN as reserved territories and the two became subjects of international law. A sui generis territorial membership of Palestine and City of Palestine to the UN was automatically realized due to the fact that the legal foundation of Israel’s UN membership was originated from the UNGA Resolution 181 in which three different territories were defined as boundaries.
When Israel in its membership admission letter to the UN Security Council gave reference the Declaration of Independence of Israel with the legal rights originating from Article 22 of the League of Nations Covenant, Israel’s Admission letter linked itself with the Chapter XII of the UN Charter, International Trusteeship System. When Israel in its admission letter had given reference of the UN General Assembly resolution 181, Israel not only defined its territories but as well-defined the territories of the Palestine State and city of Jerusalem as territories subject to decolonization.
By applying for membership to the UN, Israel automatically requested that territorial integrity or political independence of Israel to be protected within the framework of Article 2.4 of the UN Charter, after its admission membership in the UN.
The main reason why states seek membership in the UN is to ensure that their territorial integrity and political independence are to be protected by the UN.
Article 2.4 of the UN Charter aims to prevent future wars by taking the right of conquest from its member states.
As a result of its admission to the UN Charter by Article 2.4, Israel requested protection of its territorial integrity and political independence but at the same time accepted to act accordingly to Article 2.4 of the UN Charter which means that Israel is never to conquest any territory of the State of Palestine and City of Jerusalem.
By its letter and declaration given to the UN Security Council , Israel accepted to protect the territorial integrity and the political independence of the Palestine State with its boundaries as written in the UN General Assembly resolution 181 as well the city of Jerusalem as a corpus separatum to be governed by a special international regime as a member of the UN.
The UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly acting under Article 4 of the UN Charter, when admitted Israel to the UN membership subject to UN General Assembly resolution 181 on decolonization in which the territories of the Palestine, Israel and City of Jerusalem defined, the territories of the Palestine State and City of Jerusalem as well admitted to the UN membership. The territories of Palestine State and City of Jerusalem are members of the UN since then and both the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly dis-empowered themselves on the definition of the territories of Palestine.
Prof h.c Mehmet Sukru Guzel
President of Center for Peace and Reconciliation Studies,
Geneve Switzerland