<\/p>\n
02 December 2024<\/p>\n
Following are UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres\u2019 remarks, delivered by Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, at the Ministerial Conference to Enhance the Humanitarian Response in Gaza, in Cairo today:<\/strong><\/p>\n I have the honour of presenting the Secretary-General\u2019s speech. \u00a0He would have loved being here. \u00a0I thank President El-Sisi for convening this urgent conference, and I express my gratitude to Egypt for its leadership.<\/p>\n From day one, Egypt has been a leading voice in seeking a peaceful resolution to this conflict.\u00a0 Egypt is also a critical humanitarian hub, supporting the delivery of desperately needed relief to Gaza at this incredibly difficult moment.<\/p>\n I urge the international community to back these efforts and build a foundation for sustainable peace in Gaza and across the Middle East.\u00a0 That\u2019s what this conference is about.<\/p>\n We are here to help secure an immediate surge in lifesaving aid for the Palestinian people, ensure preparedness for a potential ceasefire, and begin laying the groundwork for recovery and reconstruction.<\/p>\n This cannot happen soon enough.\u00a0 As we gather in Cairo, humanity itself is being tested.\u00a0 As I have said repeatedly, nothing justifies the 7\u00a0October\u00a02023 abhorrent acts of terror by Hamas, nor the taking of hostages.<\/p>\n And nothing justifies the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.\u00a0 Yet, conditions for Palestinians in Gaza are appalling and apocalyptic.<\/p>\n More than 44,000\u00a0Palestinians \u2014 mostly women and children \u2014 have been reportedly killed.\u00a0 Virtually the entire population of Gaza has been displaced \u2014 often multiple times.<\/p>\n Malnutrition is rampant.\u00a0 In the past four months alone, nearly 19,000\u00a0children were hospitalized due to acute malnutrition \u2014 nearly double the cases in the first half of the year.\u00a0 Famine is imminent.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the health system has collapsed.\u00a0 And Gaza now has the highest number of child amputees per capita anywhere in the world \u2014 many losing limbs and undergoing surgeries without even anaesthesia.\u00a0 What we are seeing may well amount to the gravest international crimes.<\/p>\n In the face of the gigantic needs, humanitarian aid is \u2014 outrageously \u2014 being blocked.\u00a0 This flies in the face of the clear requirements under international humanitarian law to respect and to protect civilians and to ensure their essential needs are met.<\/p>\n It defies numerous General Assembly and Security Council resolutions demanding a ceasefire and unhindered humanitarian access.\u00a0 And it ignores the International Court of Justice, which issued binding provisional orders that must be complied with.<\/p>\n At best, the entry of goods into Gaza is grossly insufficient, inconsistent and unpredictable \u2014 a drop in an ocean of need.\u00a0 \u201cAid by exception\u201d is neither humane nor effective in saving lives.<\/p>\n Any aid that does trickle through faces looting, while delivery is hampered by unexploded ordnance, as well as destroyed and overcrowded roads.\u00a0 Last month, 90 per cent of aid trucks \u2014 98\u00a0of 109 \u2014 were looted at Kerem Shalom.\u00a0 This breakdown \u2014 and more \u2014 is a direct consequence of the failure to ensure public order and safety.<\/p>\n But, the crisis for Palestinians continues to worsen.\u00a0 In North Gaza, the situation is growing more perilous by the day.\u00a0 In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, militarized Israeli security operations, settlement-expansion, evictions, demolitions, violence and threats of annexation are inflicting further pain and injustice.<\/p>\n And Palestinians continue to be subject to draconian restrictions on their movement and their access to services, livelihoods and farmlands.<\/p>\n The humanitarian community is doing all it can, but the obstacles are overwhelming.\u00a0 The aid system itself is in the crosshairs.\u00a0 Since the conflict began, 251\u00a0UN colleagues have been killed \u2014 almost all of whom worked for United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East\u00a0(UNRWA).<\/p>\n In addition, humanitarian installations, including hospitals and schools, have been damaged or destroyed.\u00a0 This is absolutely unacceptable and must stop.\u00a0 Israeli measures, including the recent Knesset bills, that could prevent UNRWA from fulfilling its mandate in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, threaten to cripple humanitarian efforts.<\/p>\n The result is a dystopian humanitarian landscape in which respect for basic principles of humanity is being shredded.\u00a0 Let\u2019s be clear: \u00a0The nightmare in Gaza is not a crisis of logistics.\u00a0 It\u2019s a crisis of political will and of respect for fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.\u00a0 As we discuss a path forward, I would like to focus on three key areas for action.<\/p>\n First<\/strong> \u2014 we must demand that all parties comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law.\u00a0The delivery of aid must be predictable and sustained.\u00a0 Humanitarian staff and operations must be guaranteed security.\u00a0 Access must be granted to all those in need, wherever they are.\u00a0 The parties must uphold their responsibility to allow and facilitate the rapid, unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief.\u00a0 United Nations premises must remain inviolable at all times.\u00a0 And any obstructions that leave civilians without relief must be removed.\u00a0 All parties are bound to ensure respect for international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n Second<\/strong> \u2014 we must speak loudly and clearly in defence of the humanitarian aid system, in particular UNRWA.\u00a0 UNRWA is an irreplaceable lifeline for millions of Palestinians.\u00a0 Its extensive network of staff and infrastructure is needed now more than ever.<\/p>\n UNRWA has more schools, medical facilities, warehouses, offices and staff than all other humanitarian agencies in the Occupied Palestinian Territory combined.\u00a0 It is responsible for the provision of state-like functions: Providing schooling to more than half a million students \u2014 with an education that champions human rights, gender equality and UN values; carrying out 16,000\u00a0medical consultations a day and attending to over 895,000\u00a0patients in the West Bank alone every year; and dispensing vital social services.<\/p>\n No other entity has the capacity or reach to deliver life-saving aid and social and development services at the scale and the breadth needed in Gaza, and in the Occupied Palestinian Territory in general.\u00a0 UNRWA is a factor of stability and trust.<\/p>\n At a time when law and order in Gaza have completely broken down, the void that will be left without UNRWA would be impossible to fill.\u00a0And make no mistake.\u00a0 If UNRWA is forced to close, the responsibility of replacing its vital services \u2014 and meeting the core needs of Palestinians in Gaza \u2014 would rest with Israel as the occupying Power.\u00a0 Not the United Nations.\u00a0 Not the international community.\u00a0 But, Israel \u2014 and Israel alone.\u00a0 So, I appeal for the urgent and full support of lifesaving humanitarian relief for the Palestinian people through UNRWA.\u00a0 There is no alternative.<\/p>\n And third<\/strong> \u2014 we need to intensify efforts for a political solution to end this nightmare.\u00a0 It\u2019s past time for an immediate ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.\u00a0 For an end to the unlawful occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory as envisaged by the International Court of Justice and requested by the General Assembly.<\/p>\n And for a two-State solution<\/strong>, in line with international law and relevant UN resolutions \u2014 with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side in peace and security, with Jerusalem as the capital of both States.\u00a0The catastrophe in Gaza is nothing short of a complete breakdown of our common humanity.\u00a0 The nightmare must stop.\u00a0 We cannot continue to look away.<\/p>\n Four days ago, Hassan, our UNRWA staff, in a coordinated movement, was moving his family to safety. \u00a0They came under fire, and by the time he found his family his wife, his three daughters had been killed, remaining himself and his son.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to act.\u00a0 With resolve this catastrophic conflict must stop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 02 December 2024 Following are UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres\u2019 remarks, delivered by Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, at the Ministerial Conference to Enhance the Humanitarian Response in Gaza, in Cairo today: I have the honour of presenting the Secretary-General\u2019s speech. \u00a0He would have loved being here. \u00a0I thank President El-Sisi for convening this urgent […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":299,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"country":[],"document-category":[2637,2773,1338],"document-source":[3621,5352],"committee-meeting":[],"document-subject":[2517,1769,1945,1829,2265,1741,1745,6771,6891],"entity":[1729],"document-language":[6542],"class_list":["post-303879","document","type-document","status-publish","hentry","document-category-remarks","document-category-speech","document-category-statement","document-source-deputy-secretary-general","document-source-secretary-general","document-subject-access-and-movement","document-subject-armed-conflict","document-subject-assistance","document-subject-casualties","document-subject-ceasefire","document-subject-human-rights-and-international-humanitarian-law","document-subject-refugees-and-displaced-persons","document-subject-two-state-solution","document-subject-unrwa","entity-united-nations-system","document-language-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/303879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/document"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/299"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/303879\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":303900,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/303879\/revisions\/303900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"document-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-category?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"document-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-source?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"committee-meeting","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/committee-meeting?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"document-subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-subject?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"entity","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/entity?post=303879"},{"taxonomy":"document-language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-language?post=303879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}