IR and Area Studies: Security Council resolution 242 (1967) of 22 November 1967 (also known as. "land for peace" resolution)

Resolution 242 (1967)
of 22 November 1967

The Security Council,

Expressing its continuing concern with the grave situation in the Middle East,

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security,

Emphasizing further that all Member States in their acceptance of the Charter of the United Nations have undertaken a commitment to act in accordance with Article 2 of the Charter,

1. Affirms that the fulfilment of Charter principles requires the establishment of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East which should include the application of both the following principles:

(i) Withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict;

(ii) Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgment of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force;

2. Affirms further the necessity

(a) For guaranteeing freedom of navigation through international waterways in the area;

(b) For achieving a just settlement of the refugee problem;

(c) For guaranteeing the territorial inviolability and political independence of every State in the area, through measures including the establishment of demilitarized zones;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to designate a Special Representative to proceed to the Middle East to establish and maintain contacts with the States concerned in order to promote agreement and assist efforts to achieve a peaceful and accepted settlement in accordance with the provisions and principles in this resolution;

4. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Security Council on the progress of the efforts of the Special Representative as soon as possible.
Adopted unanimously at the 1382nd meeting

Follow up:

http://www.un.org/Depts/dpi/palestine/ch3.pdf
Page 1

Chapter

THE 1967 AND 1973 WARS

Security Council adopts resolution 242 (1967).

With the question of Palestine unresolved, an uneasy peace, punc-

tuated by violence and acts of force, was maintained in the region

from 1950 until 1967, when Israel came to occupy the entire area of

the former British Mandate of Palestine.

Establishment of UNEF I

Earlier, armed conflict had erupted in 1956, when, on 29

October, Israel began military operations against Egypt, joined

later by France and the United Kingdom. In a politically

charged atmosphere, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in July

of that year. The crisis ended with a ceasefire called for by the

General Assembly at an emergency special session, the eventual

withdrawal of the invading forces and the deployment of the

With the question of Palestine unresolved, an uneasy peace, punc-

tuated by violence and acts of force, was maintained in the region

from 1950 until 1967, when Israel came to occupy the entire area of

the former British Mandate of Palestine.

Establishment of UNEF I

Earlier, armed conflict had erupted in 1956, when, on 29

October, Israel began military operations against Egypt, joined

later by France and the United Kingdom. In a politically

charged atmosphere, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in July

of that year. The crisis ended with a ceasefire called for by the

General Assembly at an emergency special session, the eventual

withdrawal of the invading forces and the deployment of the

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Page 1

Chapter

THE 1967 AND 1973 WARS

Security Council adopts resolution 242 (1967).

With the question of Palestine unresolved, an uneasy peace, punc-

tuated by violence and acts of force, was maintained in the region

from 1950 until 1967, when Israel came to occupy the entire area of

the former British Mandate of Palestine.

Establishment of UNEF I

Earlier, armed conflict had erupted in 1956, when, on 29

October, Israel began military operations against Egypt, joined

later by France and the United Kingdom. In a politically

charged atmosphere, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in July

of that year. The crisis ended with a ceasefire called for by the

General Assembly at an emergency special session, the eventual

withdrawal of the invading forces and the deployment of the

Page 2

rial integrity and political independence of every State in

the area and their right to live in peace within secure and

recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force.

The resolution also affirmed the territorial inviolability of

every State in the region and called for “achieving a just settle-

ment of the refugee problem”.

Egypt and Jordan accepted resolution 242 (1967) and con-

sidered Israeli withdrawal from all territories occupied in the

1967 war as a precondition to negotiations. Israel, which also

accepted the resolution, stated that the questions of withdrawal

and refugees could be settled only through direct negotiations

with the Arab States and the conclusion of a comprehensive

peace treaty. Syria rejected the Council action, maintaining

that the resolution had linked the central issue of Israeli with-

drawal to concessions demanded from Arab countries. The

Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) strongly criticized the

resolution, which it said reduced the question of Palestine to a

refugee problem.

War of 1973 and Security Council resolution 338 (1973)

In October 1973, war broke out again between Egypt and Israel

in the Suez Canal area and the Sinai and between Israel and the

Syrian Arab Republic on the Golan Heights. As fighting

reached a critical stage, the Soviet Union and the United States

jointly requested an urgent meeting of the Security Council. On

22 October, the Security Council adopted resolution 338

(1973), which reaffirmed the principles of resolution 242 and

called for negotiations aimed at “a just and durable peace in the

Middle East”. The ceasefire call was later confirmed in resolu-

tion 339 (1973) of 23 October, and the Secretary-General was

requested to dispatch United Nations observers immediately.

However, as fighting continued in the region, President

Anwar el Sadat of Egypt appealed directly to the Soviet Union

and the United States to intervene with troops and enforce the

ceasefire. While the Soviet Union agreed, the United States

United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF I)—the first United

Nations peacekeeping force.

UNEF I was withdrawn in May 1967 at the request of Egypt,

which had informed the Secretary-General that it would no

longer consent to the stationing of the force on Egyptian terri-

tory and in Gaza. On 5 June 1967, hostilities broke out between

Israel and Egypt, Jordan and Syria. By the time a ceasefire called

for by the Security Council was accepted by the parties, Israel

had occupied the Egyptian Sinai, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank

including East Jerusalem and part of the Syrian Golan Heights.

After the ceasefire was secured, the Security Council adopted

resolution 237 (1967), in which it called upon Israel to ensure

the safety, welfare and security of the inhabitants of the areas

where military operations had taken place and to facilitate the

return of the displaced persons. The Governments concerned

were asked to respect scrupulously the humanitarian principles

governing the protection of civilian persons in time of war con-

tained in the Fourth Geneva Convention, of 1949. At its fifth

emergency special session, convened after the fighting began,

the General Assembly called upon Governments and interna-

tional organizations to extend emergency humanitarian assist-

ance to those affected by the war. The Assembly asked Israel to

rescind all measures already taken and to desist from taking fur-

ther action which would alter the status of Jerusalem.

Security Council resolution 242 (1967)

Later that year, on 22 November, the Security Council unani-

mously adopted, after much negotiation, resolution 242 (1967),

laying down principles for a peaceful settlement in the Middle

East. The resolution stipulated that the establishment of a just

and lasting peace should include the application of two principles:

✹ Withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied

in the recent conflict; and

✹ Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and

respect for and acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territo-

Page 3

opposed the request, putting the two super Powers on a collision

course. At the request of Egypt, the Security Council recon-

vened on 24 October, where a resolution calling for the creation

of a new peacekeeping force, which became the second United

Nations Emergency Force (UNEF II), was worked out. After

Egypt and Israel agreed to disengage their forces, UNEF II super-

vised their redeployment. Under a separate agreement reached

in May 1974, Israel and Syria signed a disengagement agree-

ment. This led to the establishment of the United Nations

Disengagement Force (UNDOF), which was assigned to moni-

tor the agreements between Israel and Syria. The Council

renewed UNEF’s mandate periodically until July 1979, when it

was allowed to lapse following the conclusion of a peace treaty

between Egypt and Israel. UNDOF continues to function on the

Golan Heights.

Page 4

(b) For achieving a just settlement of the refugee problem;

independence of every State in the area, through meas-

u res including the establishment of demilitarized zones;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to designate a Special Repre-

sentative to proceed to the Middle East to establish and

maintain contacts with the States concerned in order to pro-

mote agreement and assist efforts to achieve a peaceful and

accepted settlement in accordance with the provisions and

principles in this resolution;

4. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Security

Council on the pro g ress of the eff o rts of the Special

Representative as soon as possible.

Adopted unanimously at the 1382nd meeting.

2) Resolution 338 (1973) of 22 October 1973

The Security Council,

1. Calls upon all parties to the present fighting to cease all firing

and terminate all military activity immediately, no later than

12 hours after the moment of the adoption of this decision, in

the positions they now occupy;

2. Calls upon the parties concerned to start immediately after

the ceasefire the implementation of Security Council resolu-

tion 242 (1967) in all of its parts;

3. Decides that, immediately and concurrently with the cease-

fire, negotiations shall start between the parties concerned

under appropriate auspices aimed at establishing a just and

durable peace in the Middle East.

Adopted at the 1747th meeting by 14 votes to none.1

One member (China) did not participate in the voting.

Security Council resolutions 242 and 338

Security Council resolution 242, adopted on 22 November 1967,

and resolution 338, adopted on 22 October 1973, are considered

basic instruments in all subsequent discussions of a Middle East

peace settlement.

1) Security Council resolution 242 (1967) of

22 November 1967

The Security Council,

Expressing its continuing concern with the grave situation in the

Middle East,

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by

war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which

every State in the area can live in security,

Emphasizing further that all Member States in their acceptance of

the Charter of the United Nations have undertaken a commit-

ment to act in accordance with Article 2 of the Charter,

1 . Affirms that the fulfillment of Charter principles re q u i res the

establishment of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East

which should include the application of both the following

p r i n c i p l e s :

(i) Withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occu-

pied in the recent conflict;

(i i) Te rmination of all claims or states of belligerency and

respect for and acknowledgment of the sovere i g n t y, terr i-

torial integrity and political independence of every State in

the area and their right to live in peace within secure and

recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of forc e;

2. Affirms further the necessity

(a) For guaranteeing freedom of navigation through inter-

national waterways in the area;

✒ UN facts

Security Council adopts resolution 242 (1967).