Conditions In Gaza Worsen, Unfit For Human Survival, UN Security Council Laments
United Nations Security Council has condemned the death, destruction and dehumanization of civilians in Gaza who have been driven from their homes, stripped of their sense of place and dignity, forced to witness their family members killed, burned and buried alive.
The council expressed their dissatisfaction during one of their briefings Tuesday, on their assessment about the ongoing Israel-Palestine war.
During the briefing on the protection of civilians in Gaza, Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Joyce Msuya, said most of Gaza is now a wasteland of rubble, essential commercial goods and services including electricity have been all but cut off which has led to increasing hunger, starvation and famine.
“Since the escalation of this conflict in October 2023, we have briefed this Council on no fewer than 16 occasions
Injured children have had the words ‘Wounded Child, No Surviving Family,’ penned on their arms”
“Mr. President, the latest offensive that Israel started in North Gaza last month is an intensified, extreme and accelerated version of the horrors of the past year”
She narrated that numerous families remain trapped under rubble, because fuel for digging equipment is being blocked by the Israeli authorities and first responders have been blocked from reaching them.
Joyce further explained that ambulances have been destroyed, hospitals have come under attack and supplies to the north are being cut off and people are being pushed further south.
“The daily cruelty we see in Gaza seems to have no limits. Beit Hanoun has been besieged for more than one month. Yesterday, food and water reached shelters, but today, Israeli soldiers forcibly displaced people from those same areas”
“As I brief you, Israeli authorities are blocking humanitarian assistance from entering North Gaza, where fighting continues, and around 75,000 people remain with dwindling water and food supplies”
“Conditions of life across Gaza are unfit for human survival. Food is insufficient. Shelter itemsneeded ahead of winter are in extremely short supply. Violent armed lootings of our convoys have become increasingly organized along routes from Kerem Shalom, driven by the collapse of public order and safety”
“Mr. President, we also remain concerned about the deteriorating situation of Palestinians in the West Bank. Israeli forces continue to employ lethal tactics that appear to defy law enforcement standards. And they are causing damage to water and sewage networks, and other infrastructure”
“The demolition of Palestinian-owned homes also continues. On 5 November, nine homes were demolished in the Silwan area outside Jerusalem’s Old City, displacing 42 people, nearly half of them children, to make way for an illegal settlement-related project”
The emergency relief coordinator stated that Israeli settlers continue attacks on Palestinians and their property, with more than 160 incidents related to the olive harvest documented in October alone, the majority resulting in casualties or property damage.
In its recommendations, the council advocated constant care to spare civilians throughout military operations, nothing that civilians must be allowed to seek protection elsewhere, and they must be guaranteed the right to voluntarily return, as international law demands.
Joyce maintained that hostages and those arbitrarily detained must be released immediately, and in the interim, they must be treated humanely and allowed visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
“Indiscriminate rocket fire towards Israel must stop. There must be accountability for international crimes. The provisional orders of the International Court of Justice in the case on the application of the Genocide Convention in the Gaza Strip and the determinations in its Advisory Opinion of July 2024 must be implemented now”
While calling on member states to use their leverage to prevent and stop violations of international humanitarian law through diplomatic and economic pressure, responsible arms transfers and combating impunity, the council emphasized that the time is now for the Security Council to use its powers under the UN Charter to ensure compliance with international law and full implementation of its resolutions.
