UN Secretary General, António Guterres on Thursday said the past 10 days had witnessed a “dangerous and horrific” surge in deadly violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly Gaza, and in Israel.
Guterres told the UN General Assembly in New York that children had been greatly affected by the violence, calling for immediate end to the conflict.
“If there is a hell on earth, it is the lives of children in Gaza,” he said.
The secretary general expressed shock at the continued air and artillery bombardment by the Israeli Defence Forces in Gaza that has so far claimed the lives of more than 200 Palestinians, including 60 children, and injured thousands more.
He also called “unacceptable”, the indiscriminate rocket fire towards Israel by Hamas – which controls the enclave – and other militant groups that has resulted in at least 12 deaths.
Guterres painted a grim picture of damaged civilian infrastructure in Gaza, closed crossings, power shortages affecting water supplies, hundreds of buildings and homes destroyed, hospitals impaired and thousands of Palestinians homeless.
“The fighting has…forced over 50,000 people to leave their homes and seek shelter in UNRWA (the UN relief agency for Palestine refugees) schools, mosques, and other places with little access to water, food, hygiene or health services.’’
He said that he was “deeply distressed” by damage to UN facilities, upholding that “humanitarian installations” were “inviolable”, including during armed conflict.
Guterres said that he was working on releasing cash from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), and the UN’s relief chief intends to release 14 million dollars from the Humanitarian Fund for the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
“Access for humanitarian goods is paramount. Attacks by militant groups on areas surrounding crossing points are unacceptable,” he added.
He also stressed that “rapid and unhindered access for humanitarian aid” must be allowed into Gaza.
Rules of war preserve “first and foremost” the protection of civilians, said Guterres, urging Israel to abide by those governing armed conflict and to “exercise maximum restraint” in its military operations.
He also appealed to Hamas and other militant groups to stop indiscriminately launching rockets into Israeli’s civilian population – a clear violation of international humanitarian law.
Concerned over violent clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians across the occupied West Bank, Guterres urged Israel to “cease demolitions and evictions” in the Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem.
“All settlement activities…are illegal under international law,’’ he reminded, and also stressed that the status quo at Holy Sites must be “upheld and respected”.
The UN chief warned that if the violence spreads beyond Israel and the Palestinian territory, it could create an environment “ripe for exploitation by radicals and extremists”, which should be prevented “at all costs”.
He told the Ambassadors that he and other UN officials were undertaking “extensive diplomatic efforts within the region” to encourage all sides to halt the violence.
Guterres called on the international community to do everything in its power to enable the parties to “step back from the brink” and on the parties themselves to allow mediation efforts to intensify to “bring the fighting to an end”.
The Secretary-General, however, encouraged the parties to replace “anger and disillusionment with hope for a future in which both Palestinians and Israelis live side by side, in peace and security”.
In his remark, UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir echoed the calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, urging the parties to “step away from the brink”.
Bozkir, howeever, called for the Security Council to speak with “a unified voice”.
“The Security Council must shoulder its responsibilities and overcome yet again its paralysis on the longest-standing item”, he spelled out, warning that its inaction hinders, the UN’s “ability and credibility” on other peace and security matters. (NAN)
