Continued lack of protection for Palestinian civilians in Gaza ‘unconscionable,’ says UN official

NEW YORK CITY: The continued lack of effective protections for civilians in Gaza is “unconscionable,” a senior UN official said on Monday.

It came as Sigrid Kaag, the UN’s humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, briefed the Security Council on the “sober and somber” situation on the ground in the territory.

She said time is “slipping away” to address a human-made humanitarian crisis that has “turned Gaza into the abyss.” An immediate ceasefire is required, she added, along with the unconditional release of all hostages and sustained efforts to deliver aid at scale.

“The infrastructure that civilians rely on must be protected and their essential needs met,” said Kaag. “As the secretary-general has reiterated, all parties must refrain from using schools, shelters or the areas around them for military purposes.

“All parties to the conflict must comply with international humanitarian law at all times. Equally, humanitarian workers need an enabling environment to ensure unimpeded and safe access to people in need. Tragically, in Gaza, nowhere is truly safe.

“Diseases, like the polio virus, that had been consigned to history in the Gaza Strip have now reappeared due to the collapse of essential services.”

She said that her team has negotiated and strengthened supply systems and additional delivery routes from or via Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, the occupied West Bank and Israel to “facilitate, accelerate and expedite a sustained and transparent flow of supplies into Gaza.”

The supply of humanitarian aid to Gaza is managed through a mechanism operated by the UN’s Office for Project Services, and its executive director, Jorge Moreira da Silva, provided council members with details of the numbers involved in aid deliveries.

Since the mechanism was introduced, he said, clearance has been requested for 229 consignments of humanitarian aid, of which 175 were approved, 101 have been delivered, 17 are pending clearance and 37 were rejected. The result is more than 22,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid has been delivered to Gaza so far, he added.

Da Silva thanked the member states that have contributed financially to his office’s operations in Gaza, and singled out the Egyptian route in particular as what he described as a “vital lifeline” for Palestinians in the territory.

“We cannot overemphasize the challenges of delivering the humanitarian response in Gaza right now,” he said.

The effective delivery of aid at the required scale will not be possible without the political will, security guarantees and a more-enabling environment, he added as he praised “the critical and irreplaceable role that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees plays in Gaza, as the key implementer of our collective will.”

Russia’s permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, criticized Western countries for their double standards in relation to continuing civilian deaths caused by Israeli strikes, which he said are being carried out with impunity as a result of backing from Washington and its allies.

“Such arrogance emanates from the unconditional support for any of its (Israel’s) actions by the United States, which has for nearly a year now been blocking any hint of a substantive reaction,” he added.

Conditions in Gaza are “horrific” and if Israel’s relentless bombardment of the territory is not stopped, more than 2 million Palestinians face the “real prospect” of a cessation of UN operations in the territory, Nebenzya said. The international community cannot allow this to happen, he warned.

The Slovenian representative to the UN, Samuel Zbogar, who holds the presidency of the Security Council this month, reiterated the need to prevent breaches of international law with respect to the protection of civilian lives, and to hold responsible those responsible for such transgressions.

“We have to dispel this sense of impunity for the lack of respect of international humanitarian law, as if civilians can be subjected to killing, maiming, bombing, torturing, displacement, under the eyes of the international community and the Security Council, this is unacceptable,” he said.

While the need to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza is of the utmost importance and will require strong political will, Zbogar said, in the meantime it is incumbent on Israel, as the occupying power, to ensure that food and medical supplies reach the civilian population.

“Obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and human rights law, must be fulfilled,” he added. “Just as the release of hostages should not be conditional, neither should humanitarian aid to civilians.

“We are approaching Oct. 7, a year of this tragic conflict. This is not an opportunity but a duty for the Security Council to show political will and determination to help end it.”

The council unanimously condemned the targeting of UN staff and humanitarian workers during the conflict, and the US envoy to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, reiterated Washington’s “unequivocal” rejection of any actions that endanger aid workers and their facilities.

“There is no basis, absolutely none, for Israel’s forces to be opening fire on clearly marked UN vehicles, as recently occurred on numerous occasions,” she said.

She called on the leadership of the Israeli army to implement “fundamental changes” in the way its forces operate, including their rules of engagement.