9631ST MEETING (PM)
SC/15701

Security Council Hears Briefings on Situation in Middle East

(Note:  Due to the financial liquidity crisis affecting the United Nations and the resulting constraints, the full press release will be published at a later date.)

THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST, INCLUDING THE PALESTINIAN QUESTION

Briefings

TOR WENNESLAND, United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, noting that talks for the release of all hostages held in Gaza and a ceasefire ended on 9 May without agreement, said:  “I fear the worst for the beleaguered and terrified civilians in Rafah, for the hostages held in unimaginable conditions for more than 225 days, and for the overstretched humanitarian operation that remains on the brink in the Strip.”  Noting that Israel Defence Forces’ operations and military manoeuvres in and around Rafah have intensified, he said that on 5 May, Hamas launched mortars and rockets at soldiers massed on the Israeli side of Karem Abu Salem/Kerem Shalom crossing, killing four and wounding 10 of them.  Israel Defense Forces’ tank shelling and a series of air strikes in Rafah killed at least 19 Palestinians on the same day, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, he said.

The following day, he added, the Israel Defense Forces said it would operate with “extreme force” against Hamas in eastern Rafah and ordered 100,000 Palestinians to immediately evacuate to what it described as an “expanded humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi”.  Stressing that this so-called humanitarian area lacks adequate shelter, food, water and sewage infrastructure, he added that crossings for the entry of humanitarian goods have already been directly affected.  In the wake of the Hamas strike on 6 May, Israeli authorities closed Karem Abu Salem/Kerem Shalom crossing for three days.  The Rafah crossing with Egypt remains closed.  Active hostilities and Israel Defense Forces operations continue to render “nowhere safe in Gaza”, including for humanitarian workers, he said, noting that 193 UN personnel have been killed in Gaza since the start of hostilities.

The current trajectory, he said, will further undermine efforts to scale up the entry of humanitarian goods and their safe distribution to desperate civilians.  Welcoming the opening of the Erez West crossing in Gaza’s north, he noted the immense scale of needs in Gaza and stressed that there is no substitute for the full and increased operation of existing land crossings.  The Secretary-General, as well as numerous international partners, including Egypt, have objected to a military operation in Rafah. Saving lives and addressing the critical needs in Rafah and Gaza more broadly must be the immediate priority, he said, while pointing out that a large-scale military operation in Rafah exacerbates the risk of escalating regional tensions, particularly across the Blue Line with Lebanon.

“There can be no long-term solution in Gaza that is not fundamentally political,” he underscored.  The new Palestinian Government, with eight ministers from Gaza, represents an important opportunity to support tangible steps towards unifying Gaza and the occupied West Bank politically, economically and administratively. Calling on the international community to support the new Government, he called for assistance in addressing its fiscal challenges, strengthening its governance capacity and preparing it to reassume its responsibilities in Gaza and, ultimately, govern the whole of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.  The Palestinian Authority must also be an integral part of planning for Gaza’s recovery and reconstruction.  “Now is the time to lay the foundations for a better future for Palestinians, Israelis and the broader region,” he added.

EDEM WOSORNU, Director, Operations and Advocacy Division, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said that the situation in Gaza has been described as a catastrophe, a nightmare and hell on earth.  “To be frank, we are running out of words to describe what is happening” in the Strip.  She noted that living conditions continue to deteriorate particularly in Jabalaya and eastern Rafah and the number of casualties continues to increase.  According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, more than 35,000 people have now been killed in the violence, and more than 79,000 injured, she said.  Gaza’s health-care system is under impossible strain.  In Rafah, 21 medical points, four primary health-care centres and four hospitals are now inaccessible.  In the north, two hospitals, five primary health-care centres and 16 medical points are inaccessible, she said, adding that an estimated 14,000 critical patients currently require medical evacuation.

Seventy-five per cent of the population — 1.7 million people — has been forcibly displaced within Gaza, many of them up to four or five times, including because of repeated evacuation instructions from the Israel Defense Forces.  In the past two weeks, more than 800,000 people have been displaced from Rafah into other areas of Gaza, she said, emphasizing unequivocally that those forcibly displaced must be guaranteed the right to voluntarily return, as international law demands.  Once over-crowded camps and emergency shelters in Rafah have now largely emptied, with most of the displaced seeking refuge in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.  But the situation at these sites is horrendous, with a dearth of adequate latrines, water points, drainage and shelter.  “Civilians’ essential needs must be met,” she said, adding that these appalling conditions leave serious doubt as to compliance with basic obligations.

The Rafah incursion is making an already fragile aid operation even more difficult, she said.  As of 17 May, the Rafah crossing remains inaccessible for humanitarian cargo, fuel and personnel movement.  Around 82,000 metric tons of supplies are stranded on the Egypt side of the crossing with food spoiling and medicines expiring.  Fuel shortages, meanwhile, impacts the functioning of bakeries, hospitals, water wells and other critical infrastructure.  The crossing at Kerem Shalom is extremely difficult for aid organizations to access from the Gaza side due to hostilities, challenging logistical conditions and complex coordination procedures.  Erez crossing opened and subsequently closed and the newly opened Erez West is now being used for limited quantities of aid but areas in the vicinity are also under evacuation orders.  She welcomed the first aid shipment delivered on 17 May via the floating dock set up by the United States.  But land routes remain the most effective way to deliver the scale of aid needed, she stressed.

The United Nations Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator is actively engaging with relevant parties to accelerate the provision of humanitarian aid, she said, demanding the protection of civilians, their homes and infrastructure.  “We need the facilitation of rapid, unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief into and within Gaza,” she said, adding that all available access points must be open and kept open for a sustained period to allow aid to enter at scale.  Humanitarian and UN staff must also be protected.  Adequate funding, particularly for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), is also needed.  As of 20 May, the 2024 flash appeal is only 25 per cent funded, she said.…


https://press.un.org/en/2024/sc15701.doc.htm