In spite of Palestinian attempts at the highest level to achieve a cease-fire and prevent all military attacks, Israel, the occupying Power, continues with its bloody military campaign against the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, committing yet additional war crimes and State terrorism. Since my last letter to you, dated 10 December 2001, Israeli occupying forces have killed 29 more Palestinians. These killings include cases of extra-judiciary executions, willful killings in cold blood and deaths as a result of Israeli bombardments by fighter jets and helicopter gunships. Israeli occupying forces have also increased their siege on many Palestinian cities and villages, including major cities such as the city of Ramallah.

In this regard, it is highly regrettable that the United Nations Security Council failed to fulfill its primary responsibilities for the maintenance of international peace and security due to the exercise of veto by one of the permanent members of the Council, during the vote on a draft resolution in the early hours of last Saturday, 15 December 2001. The General Assembly, however, under the formula "United for Peace", resumed the tenth emergency special session on 20 December 2001 and adopted by a large majority the same text of the draft resolution which was presented to Security Council. The tenth emergency special session also adopted another draft resolution on the Fourth Geneva Convention and the Declaration adopted by the Conference of High Contracting Parties on 5 December 2001 in Geneva, calling on all members and observers of the United Nations as well as the organization and its agencies to observe the above mentioned Declaration.

The tenth emergency special session, in adopting those two important draft resolutions, made the right decision and send the appropriate message to the occupying Power, to the people under occupation and to the peoples and governments of the region. Moreover, the resolutions adopted required a follow-up from members and United Nations systems.

In follow-up of my previous 84 letters to you regarding this grave situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, dated from 29 September 2000 to 10 December 2001 (A/55/432-S/2000/921; A/55/437-S/2000/930; A/55/450-S/2000/957; A/55/466-S/2000/971; A/55/474-S/2000/984; A/55/490-S/2000/993; A/ES-10/39-S/2000/1015; A/ES-10/40-S/2000/1025; A/ES-10/42-S/2000/1068; A/ES-10/43-S/2000/1078; A/ES-10/44 S/2000/1093; A/ES-10/45-S/2000/1104; A/ES-10/46-S/2000/1107; A/ES-10/47-S/2000/1116; A/ES-10/48-S/2000/1129; A/ES-10/49-S/2000/1154; A/ES-10/50-S/2000/1173; A/ES-10/51- S/2000/1185; A/ES-10/52-S/2000/1206; A/ES-10/53-S/2000/1247; A/ES-10/54-S/2001/7; A/ES-10/55-S/2001/33; A/ES-10/56-S/2001/50; A/ES-10/57-S/2001/101; A/ES-10/58-S/2001/131; A/ES-10/59-S/2001/156; A/ES-10/60-S/2001/175; A/ES-10/61-S/2001/189; A/ES-10/64-S/2001/209; A/ES-10/65-S/2001/226; A/ES-10/66-S/2001/239; A/ES-10/67-S/2001/255; A/ES-10/68-S/2001/284; A/ES-10/69-S/2001/295; A/ES-10/70-S/2001/304; A/ES-10/71-S/2001/314; A/ES-10/72-S/2001/332; A/ES-10/75-S/2001/352; A/ES-10/76-S/2001/372; A/ES-10/79-S/2001/418; A/ES-10/80-S/2001/432; A/ES-10/81-S/2001/447; A/ES-10/82-S/2001/463; A/ES-10/83-S/2001/471; A/ES-10/84-S/2001/479; A/ES-10/85-S/2001/486; A/ES-10/86-S/2001/496; A/ES-10/87-S/2001/504; A/ES-10/88-S/2001/508; A/ES-10/89-S/2001/544; A/ES-10/90-S/2001/586; A/ES-10/91-S/2001/605; A/ES-10/92-S/2001/629; A/ES-10/93-S/2001/657; A/ES-10/94-S/2001/669; A/ES-10/95-S/2001/686; A/ES-10/96-S/2001/697; A/ES-10/97-S/2001/708;A/ES-10/98-S/2001/717;A/ES-10/99 S/2001/742; A/ES-10/100-S/2001/754;A/ES10/101-S/2001/783;A/ES-10/102-S/2001/785; A/ES-10/103-S/2001/798; A/ES10/104;S/2001/812; A/ES-10/105-S/2001/814; A/ES-10/107-S/2001/821; A/ES-10/108-S/2001/826; A/ES-10/111-S/2001/880; A/ES-10/112-S/2001/918; A/ES-10/114-S/2001/928; A/ES-10/115-S/2001/932; A/ES-10/116-S/2001/941; A/ES-10/117-S/2001/971 A/ES-10/118-S/2001/989; A/ES-10/119-S/2001/991; A/ES-10/121-S/2001/1007, A/ES-10/122-S/2001/1024; A/ES-10/123-S/2001/1036; A/ES-10/124-S/2001/1084; A/ES-10/125-S/2001/1092; A/ES-10/126-S/2001/1118; A/ES-10/128-S/2001/1149 and A/ES-10/129-S/2001/1166), I regret to inform you that the 29 Palestinians killed by Israeli occupying forces raise the total number of Palestinians killed since 28 September 2000 to 832. (The names of the martyrs are contained in the annex to the present letter.)