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12 December 2024
The United Nations issues an urgent humanitarian appeal to support 3 million people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
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11 December 2024
Delivery of additional fuel to bakeries in Gaza, and obstacles to conducting malnutrition tests
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09 December 2024
No evacuation order given before hospital strike, says WHO
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The Sustainable Development Goals in Palestine
The UN and its partners in Palestine are working towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals: 17 interconnected Goals which address the major development challenges faced by people in Palestine and around the world. These are the goals the UN is working on in Palestine:
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12 December 2024
The United Nations issues an urgent humanitarian appeal to support 3 million people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
To address the most urgent needs of approximately 3 million people in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 2025.The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), in its appeal, stated that modern history has not witnessed such unprecedented levels of killings and destruction in Gaza. Simultaneously, violence has escalated significantly in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.OCHA noted that needs have drastically worsened due to the effects of intense and ongoing military operations, repeated evacuation orders, and restrictions on the ability of humanitarian agencies to deliver aid to those in need. The United Nations and its partners estimate that the actual needs far exceed this amount, with at least $6.6 billion required to address them adequately.OCHA stated: “People are either killed by bombs or bullets, or they slowly suffocate due to a lack of the most basic means of survival. Gaza has become the most dangerous place in the world and the most challenging in terms of delivering humanitarian assistance.”The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs added that access points to Gaza remain restricted or closed, humanitarian law and notification mechanisms are not being respected, and staff face threats of detention at gunpoint at checkpoints. Residents are forced to rely on severely limited aid due to the collapse of public order and security within Gaza.OCHA outlined several essential conditions for delivering principled humanitarian assistance on the required scale, including ensuring the ability of humanitarian actors to safely and sustainably deliver relief to all those in need, increasing entry points and supply routes by land into and within Gaza, and improving security in the area to facilitate the safe movement of humanitarian goods and relief personnel.
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11 December 2024
Delivery of additional fuel to bakeries in Gaza, and obstacles to conducting malnutrition tests
At his regular press briefing, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric noted the dire situation, and the efforts to alleviate suffering and provide essential aid.In the north central area around Gaza City, limited deliveries of fuel on 6 and 8 December allowed four bakeries to resume operations at full capacity, enabling the resumption of bread distributions to shelters and community kitchens, alongside cooked meals.However, the situation remains dire in other areas.“In North Gaza and Rafah governorates, seven bakeries remain shut down due to the ongoing hostilities. And in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, all eight bakeries are closed, due to flour shortages and safety concerns caused by overcrowding,” Mr. Dujarric said.Humanitarian partners are prioritising flour distribution to households in southern and central Gaza, providing each family with a 25-kilo bag of wheat flour, as stocks allow.Prices skyrocketingYet, the soaring cost illustrates the severity of supply shortages – as of 1 December in Deir al Balah, a 25-kilo bag of flour cost at least $280, while in Khan Younis, it was $245, according to humanitarian partners.“The immediate entry of more food supplies in Gaza is crucial to address the deepening hunger crisis across the Gaza Strip,” the UN Spokesperson emphasised.Health concerns are equally alarming. Severe access challenges prevent regular malnutrition screenings, which are critical to identifying children in need of treatment. In the fourth quarter of 2024, only 151,000 of Gaza’s 346,000 children under five were screened.In November, the UN and aid partners distributed supplementary food to children, despite logistical delays. The programme reached 146,000 children in Rafah, Khan Younis, Deir al Balah, and Gaza governorates.Closed-door Security Council meetingLater in the day, the UN Security Council met behind closed doors to discuss the situation in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, with a briefing by Sigrid Kaag, UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator.Speaking with reporters after the briefing, Ms. Kaag underscored the need for political will to address the crisis and ensure that humanitarian aid reaches those in need.“There is no substitute. No system can and will substitute or compensate for an absence or lack of political will. This is political – political will and political choice,” she said, emphasising that the responsibility lies with Member States and the parties to the conflict.
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09 December 2024
No evacuation order given before hospital strike, says WHO
Leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).“All night, there was heavy bombing around the Kamal Adwan Hospital”, said Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the UN health’s agency Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory.Speaking from the enclave to journalists in Geneva via video, he reported that an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tank was seen outside the hospital at around 4am on Friday, while people were told to move out the health centre.“There was no official evacuation order,” he maintained, but instead, rumours and panic.“People started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF fire. There are reports of deaths and arrests.”Emergency team thwartedThe veteran UN humanitarian worker explained that very few aid deliveries and emergency health teams have reached Kamal Adwan Hospital since the beginning of the Israeli military operation in Gaza's far north in early October. This has left the facility without critical reserves, including fuel.After seven weeks of unsuccessful attempts and denied requests for access, an international Emergency Medical Team (EMT) with basic supplies was finally deployed to Kamal Adwan “less than a week ago”, only to be told to leave again seven days later, explained Dr. Peeperkorn.The team comprised two surgeons, two emergency nurses, one gynaecologist and one logistician. “They are just there, and within one week they are gone again. This is not only for me incomprehensible but also incredibly, incredibly sad,” said the senior WHO medic, who added that no surgeons remain at Kamal Adwan Hospital.Missions denied or impededSince October 2023, 58 per cent of the 273 WHO-led missions inside Gaza have been either denied, cancelled or impeded.This has added to the urgent but extremely difficult task of evacuating patients who need specialist medical support outside the enclave.Since 7 Oct 2023 and the start of the war sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel, 5,325 patients have been evacuated from Gaza.Evacuation crisisAlmost 5,000 travelled via the Rafah crossing before it was closed last 7 May, including 4,000 children. The UN health agency estimates that at least 12,000 patients across Gaza still need medical evacuation to survive.At least 44,612 Palestinians have been killed and 105,834 wounded since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian health authorities. The majority of those killed were women and children.Gaza’s children paying horrific priceGaza’s children continued to die this week while sheltering inside tents, or desperately queuing for bread, said UNICEF Middle East and North Africa Regional Director Edouard Beigbeder on Friday.An airstrike in Nuseirat Camp, central Gaza, reportedly claimed the lives of four children near a local food distribution point on Wednesday.“They were amongst civilians lining up for a meal until bombs started falling from the sky. Two boys and a girl under 10 years old, and a teenage boy of 16”, he said, adding that an airstrike reportedly hit 40 tents that evening in Al Mawasi, a unilaterally designated “humanitarian zone,” causing massive explosion and fires. At least 22 people were reportedly killed, including eight children, with dozens more injured.Last week, two children and a woman were reportedly crushed to death while waiting in line outside a bakery in central Gaza. “Hungry children swept up by despair,” he continued.“The overall humanitarian response in Gaza is teetering toward full collapse. The lives of virtually all children are at risk or have been shattered by unimaginable trauma, loss, and deprivation,” said the senior UNICEF official.”“Their safety and access to essential humanitarian aid is not being facilitated as explicitly demanded by international law…The ongoing normalization of such horror needs to turn into action to stop it. Enough is enough.”
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03 December 2024
The nightmare in Gaza must stop, urges UN deputy chief
To alleviate suffering and prevent the further devastation of the enclave.Speaking at a ministerial conference on humanitarian aid for Gaza, convened in Cairo by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, UN deputy chief Amina Mohammed emphasised the urgent need for lifesaving assistance and a plan for the enclave’s long-term recovery.“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 – this cannot happen soon enough,” she said, speaking on behalf of the UN Secretary-General António Guterres.Organized looting forces UNRWA to pause aid Deliveries of desperately needed food and other supplies into Gaza have had to be halted through the enclave’s Kerem Shalom crossing because of looting by armed gangs, the UN agency assisting Palestine refugees, UNRWA, has announced.The agency took the decision on Sunday after it said that lorries carrying food were “all taken” after crossing into Gaza through what is the main aid corridor.Explaining the move, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that the route had not been safe “for months”. On 16 November, a large convoy of aid trucks which also crossed through Kerem Shalom was stolen by armed gangs.Further inside Gaza, aid workers are deeply concerned that malnutrition levels are spiralling.UNRWA Senior Emergencies Officer, Louise Wateridge, speaking from one of the UN agency’s schools in Deir Al-Balah where 6,000 people are sheltering on Monday, described families sleeping on cold, wet floors and witnessing one young child “crying and screaming in the corner, just screaming for a piece of bread. She was just crying for a piece of bread.”Children worst hitIn Cairo, Ms. Mohammed outlined the devastating toll of the conflict: with over 44,000 Palestinian lives reportedly lost, according to the authorities in Gaza, widespread displacement and the collapse of essential services.Children have been the worst impacted, with nearly 19,000 hospitalised in the past four months alone due to acute malnutrition. Gaza now has the highest number of child amputees per capita globally, with many surgeries conducted without anaesthesia.“What we are seeing may well amount to the gravest international crimes,” she said.Aid ‘outrageously’ blockedMs. Mohammed expressed deep concern over the severe restrictions on humanitarian aid to Gaza, describing the flow of supplies as “outrageously” insufficient and unpredictable“Aid by exception is neither humane nor effective,” she said, citing challenges such as looting, unexploded ordnance, and destroyed roads.Last month, a large convoy of aid was stolen on the road out of Kerem Shalom: “Humanitarian staff and operations must be guaranteed security. Access must be granted to all those in need, wherever they are. United Nations premises must remain inviolable at all times,” she stressed.Robust support neededMs. Mohammed called for robust support for the entire humanitarian aid system in Gaza, particularly UNRWA, describing it as an irreplaceable lifeline for Palestinians.“If UNRWA is forced to close, the responsibility of replacing its vital services – and meeting the core needs of Palestinians in Gaza – would rest with Israel as the occupying Power,” she said, adding that there is no alternative to the UNRWA.“Not the United Nations. Not the international community. But Israel – and Israel alone.”Reiterating the need for a political solution, Ms. Mohammed urged an immediate ceasefire and the unconditional release of hostages. She also emphasised the urgency of a two-State solution, in line with international law and relevant UN resolutions, with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side in peace and security, with Jerusalem as the capital of both States.“The catastrophe in Gaza is nothing short of a complete breakdown of our common humanity,” she concluded. “The nightmare must stop.”Recovery and mental healthSigrid Kaag, Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, painted a grim picture of the destruction and trauma she witnessed during her visits.“Nothing prepares you as a fellow human being to the toll, the trauma, the suffering, the loss and the sense of abandonment Palestinian civilians feel,” she told delegates in Cairo.Ms. Kaag underscored the importance of mental health support, particularly for children.“The scars of war are not only physical,” she noted, calling for investments in psychosocial programmes alongside immediate aid and recovery efforts.Build a futureMs. Kaag also urged stakeholders to prioritise early recovery initiatives, which include restoring basic services, rehabilitating infrastructure and fostering economic stability, in partnership with the Palestinian Authority.“Early recovery, after all, is also an investment in future stability, in prospects of peace of a Palestine of Gaza of which Gaza is an extricable link and entity of a future Palestinian State,” she said.“Statehood is not only about bricks and mortar,” she added, “Recovery is about restoring lives, dignity, and hope.”
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26 November 2024
No end in sight to ‘horror’ in Gaza, UN official tells Security Council
Briefing Ambassadors on the Security Council, Muhannad Hadi, Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, outlined the impact of the conflict, which is now in its second year.“As winter approaches, the horror in Gaza continues to grind on with no end in sight,” he said.Sparked by last October’s terror attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in southern Israel, the conflict has reportedly claimed the lives of over 44,000 Palestinians and 1,700 Israelis and foreign nationals.Tens of thousands more have been injured, and more than 100 Israelis hostages remain in Gaza under dire conditions.Situation remains dire in GazaMr. Hadi highlighted the devastating impact of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operations in northern Gaza, which have led to mass displacement and scores of fatalities, including women and children.Humanitarian assistance to those in need has also been severely impacted, with UN convoys of lifesaving aid looted by armed Palestinian groups.A UN convoy of 109 trucks carrying food was looted on November 16, with 97 trucks lost. Days later, over 20 individuals were reportedly killed during operations targeting looters, led by Gaza authorities.“Attacks on humanitarians and humanitarian convoys must cease immediately. Law and order must be restored, and the civilian population must have safe access to vital aid,” Mr. Hadi said. Violence escalating in the West BankMr. Hadi further informed the Security Council about increasing violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.Thirty-two Palestinians were killed during Israeli security operations over the past few weeks, and Israeli settler attacks on Palestinian communities, particularly during the olive harvest, have escalated.Shooting and ramming attacks by Palestinians also continued, though no fatalities were reported in the occupied West Bank or Israel, he said.He added that Israel’s advancement of settlements and demolition of Palestinian-owned structures also continued, with some ministers “now openly calling” for the annexation of the occupied West Bank.“I reiterate that annexation constitutes a violation of international law and must be firmly rejected,” he noted.Impact on the wider regionMr. Hadi also noted the impact of the conflict in Israel, where civilians continue to face attacks from both Hamas and Hezbollah.“Regrettably, the situation remains grave across the region. Israeli military operations continued across the Blue Line with Lebanon, as did the firing of rockets by Hezbullah toward Israel, including a barrage this weekend,” he said.He welcomed the ongoing diplomatic efforts to reach a cessation of hostilities and urged the parties to accept a ceasefire “anchored in the full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701.”Call for ceasefireMr. Hadi also warned that developments across the occupied Palestinian territory suggested “an imminent risk of losing the frameworks” we have been operating under since 1967 and 1973 when the Security Council adopted the resolutions “aimed at laying the foundations for a just and lasting peace”.“We continue to call for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and the de-escalation of tensions around the region,” he added, appealing for political and security frameworks that would help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, ending the occupation and achieving a two-State solution.To avert further escalation, he urged the international community to renew its commitment to diplomacy and support measures that ensure long-term safety and security for both Israelis and Palestinians.“We need a ceasefire; we need to get the hostages out; we need life-saving support delivered safely now,” Mr. Hadi added.
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25 November 2024
Fleeing families just have ‘the clothes on their back’
Louise Wateridge, Senior Emergency Coordinator for UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, told UN News.Speaking from an UNRWA school in Gaza City, which is in the north of the Strip, Ms. Wateridge said that, for almost 50 days, UN humanitarian missions have attempted to deliver supplies to northern Gaza, including besieged areas such as Jabalia, but access to those in desperate need has been extremely limited.Louise Wateridge: I have heard absolutely horrific stories today, speaking to families who fled Jabalia for their lives. They say there was just nothing left. It was absolutely flattened. There was death around them. They ran out of food. They had no access to water.They reached UNRWA schools like this one, searching for safety but, days after arriving, airstrikes which killed many of the people sheltering here. And we've seen six such incidents on UN school shelters.Since this siege began, we have had this horrible situation where people are forced to flee for their lives from the besieged north; they come to Gaza City looking for safety, but the danger just keeps following them. Death and destruction are their shadows.UN News: What is left in Gaza City?Louise Wateridge: As far as the eye can see, every building is damaged and destroyed. You might see a stairwell riddled with bullet holes, or an exposed living room hanging out of a third-floor apartment, signs that there was once life here.Around 300,000 people are now in Gaza City and it's just rubble. That’s why people are forced to shelter in these UN facilities, because there is just nowhere else to go.With winter coming, people are trying to find some kind of cover and safety, and protect themselves from the elements. They need tarpaulins, tents and shelter. They don't have blankets or mattresses. They are just out in the in the open.UN News: How difficult is it to get aid in?Louise Wateridge: For almost 50 days, access to besieged areas of north Gaza has either been denied or impeded. People have no access to food or water. We've heard people say they drank water from puddles to survive.The eight UNRWA water wells in Jabalia are all damaged and destroyed. The hospitals have been hit on multiple occasions, and all of the UNRWA health clinics are out of medication.Many humanitarian workers have been injured and killed themselves since the start of this war. Are they still at risk?Louise Wateridge: Yes, every day. There is absolutely nowhere safe in Gaza.247 UNRWA colleagues have been killed in this war.Time and time again, day in and day out, our colleagues and their families are being injured and killed.Every day my team and I wake up, the first thing we do is text each other to make sure everybody made it through another night.For some weeks, we have had colleagues scattered across the Gaza Strip. Sometimes you lose contact with each other for days, if not weeks on end, and we don't know how they are.Sometimes we find out our colleagues have been killed and we haven't known for a few days. Sometimes they come back online. It’s desperate.Multiple United Nation convoys have been shot at. I was in a convoy in July that was shot at delivering supplies to northern Gaza.It's becoming more dangerous and more difficult for humanitarians to do their jobs by the day.
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22 November 2024
Gaza aid delivery ‘grinding to a halt’ alongside rampant insecurity
The senior aid official in the region said on Thursday.Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory Muhannad Hadi said that the survival of two million people now “hangs in the balance”.Bakeries are closing rapidly for lack of flour or fuel to operate power generators and for over six weeks, the Israeli authorities have preventing all commercial imports from entering the Strip.Looting surge“At the same time, a surge in armed looting targeting humanitarian convoys and truck drivers, fuelled by the breakdown in public order and safety, has further crippled our ability to collect supplies from border areas and deliver critical aid,” he said.Pushed to the brink, civilians lack access to essential support they desperately need, while so far this year UN trucks have been looted 75 times – including 15 such attacks since 4 November alone – while looters have broken into UN facilities on 34 occasions.“Just last week, one driver was shot in the head and hospitalized, along with another truck driver”, Mr. Hadi recounted. “This Saturday, no less than 98 trucks were looted in a single attack with trucks being damaged or stolen.”He added that although agencies remain committed to staying and delivering, “our ability to do so is increasingly being called into question.”It is essential to reestablish the rule of law to allow safe and unimpeded access, he added.Violence in the West BankIn the occupied West Bank, UN humanitarians alongside the Palestinian Authority and other partners are assessing the needs of Palestinians affected by a nearly two-day operation conducted by Israeli forces in Jenin and Jenin refugee camp.Several homes and key infrastructure, including water and sewage lines, are said to have been damaged while power has been reportedly cut off in some areas, according to media reports.As in the Gaza Strip, children in the West Bank have also borne the brunt of fighting since the onset of the crisis last October.“Our humanitarian colleagues report that since 7 October of last year, four Palestinian children have been killed every week on average in the West Bank – marking a three-fold increase compared to the first nine months of 2023,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists at the regular press briefing in New York.“Meanwhile, violence by settlers continues to displace Palestinian children in the West Bank,” he added.Of the more than 1,700 Palestinian displaced by settler violence, intimidation and harassment in Bedouin communities and herding communities, around half were children.
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21 November 2024
‘We are at the point where diplomacy has failed’, warns outgoing Middle East envoy
according to the senior envoy who has been at the forefront of these efforts since 2021.More than a year into the conflict, “we are at the point where diplomacy has failed in the situation where the geopolitics is superbly difficult,” Tor Wennesland said in an exclusive interview with UN News earlier this week.Stepping downThe veteran Norwegian diplomat is stepping down from his role as UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, after spending decades trying to improve relations across the region.He was Adviser in Norway’s foreign ministry during the process that led to the 1995 Oslo II Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip and served as the country’s Representative to the Palestinian Authority as well as Ambassador to Egypt and Libya.“I have abused the patience of my family for more than 15 to 20 years on this file, and at a certain point in time you have to take a decision on how long you’re going to continue,” he said.Hope remains highMr. Wennesland continues to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and humanitarians access to people on the ground.He believes that peace is still possible between Israelis and Palestinians, and the two-State solution, in line with UN Security Council resolutions, remains viable despite attempts to undermine it.He also expressed hope of progress towards ending the war, saying “you need to come to a time where you can properly sit down and think clearly on how you get out of it. That's where we are now approaching.”He began the interview by describing developments since the onset of the war in Gaza following the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel.The interview has been edited for length and clarity.Tor Wennesland: All we had done before under different circumstances - and I've been working on this file since Oslo II was signed - we had difficulties, we had bad times, but this time it was like an avalanche and it was hitting everybody by surprise.But it was hitting us at a time where there were no clear dynamics around this issue politically at all. So, we were very quickly into territory where the events of an armed conflict immediately escalated and actually in the West Bank also continuing a trend that had lasted for a while.So, I think honestly everybody who was involved in this was scrambling. I mean, everybody. And nobody had really any kind of clear sense on how to deal with it, whether that was the parties themselves, the regional actors, and also the UN.I mean, this was the biggest stress test the UN has been exposed to on this file ever, so we needed to patch up our capacity and see what to do and see how to move forward.But I can assure you, given what has been mobilized to stop this war over the last 14 months without any degree of success because we are still in the middle of it, I mean we are at the point where diplomacy has failed in the situation where the geopolitics is superbly difficult. And it has been reflected also in the work of the Council, and it definitely put big restraints on the UN and the ability of the UN to conduct its work on the ground.UN News: After all of this, do you think that the peace process, including the two-State solution, can still be revived? And is this still the basis for your discussions and talks?Tor Wennesland: Absolutely. And there is nobody - and I have had a huge outreach in my job here now - there is nobody who is defining it differently except from those who would like to kill it, and we have that happening as we speak.And my biggest concern is that we are losing the parameters we have been operating under here since back to ’67 and ’73 with the formative resolutions of the Council. But now we have an outright drive to dismantle the institutional structures of what was to become a Palestinian State, and it's happening with a speed and a drive that I haven't seen before.And the problem with that is that we would have it in our face, if the forces that would like to undermine a two-State solution would be succeeding. Obviously for the UN system, they are struggling with the systemic impacts of that for agencies and the UN as a whole; extremely difficult.But we should not forget that it is the undermining of the Palestinian capacity to - with support from the international community - strengthen their own ability to run Palestine.That is really under pressure, and even more so than the UN system, and the ones that are suffering are the Palestinian population. And I can assure you Gaza is absolutely a nightmare and it's in a way terrifying to go in there and see the exposure of the population to what's going on. But there is a fear factor [in] the West Bank as well because they see that the structures are crumbling.UN News: You're saying there are these forces, and it seemed like influential forces, that will undermine or are undermining the Palestinian State and the two-State solution. But what can be done right now from the UN and from the international community to fix this situation, the bleak situation?Tor Wennesland: Well, there is no quick fix on this but there has to be a resolve and a drive to do it. I have a very close dialogue with the regional countries. They are the ones who have most to gain from a regional stability situation, in addition to both ordinary Israelis and Palestinians.We should not forget that Israel is crumbling as well as a result of this. The Israeli economy is going down and there are tensions in Israel that I have never seen in all my period of work here that are now playing out in front of our eyes.The whole system, both in Palestine and in Israel, is out of balance and to reset it will take a lot of effort.We need to stick to two things. First of all, we need to stick to normal international principles and international law and not give that away for a second because then we give it away in a way that can be used negatively in other places.Secondly, we have to do whatever the UN can to provide humanitarian support to ordinary people on the ground, and we are doing that under massive constraints and with UN staff exposing themselves in a way that we have huge losses of staff as a result of this. And then we need to re-mobilize all we can to address the politics of a way forward.UN News: You mentioned to the Security Council that the current events will have impacts for generations and will shape the region in ways we cannot fully comprehend. What are the consequences you're most worried and concerned about?Tor Wennesland: The Palestinian population is a very young population. If we cannot offer any way out, there are others that will start recruiting. And we should not forget that a crisis like this will have negative effects across the board in the neighbouring countries and in the region in particular, but also other places because the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is something that is reflecting globally in the streets of the capitals of Europe, in US, in Australia, and definitely in the region.We are playing a poker game with a young generation that without any perspective on solutions, can find other ways to get an outlet for their frustration. That is very dangerous, and it's dangerous for all. And it's not only here. It is dangerous. UN News: I'll quote something else you mentioned to the Security Council. You mentioned that if the parties cannot find a way out, the international community must define the path forward. How do you see this right now with new developments around the world, with maybe new governments, new administrations, changes?Tor Wennesland: Well, the world is like it is. I mean, the point of departure is that we need to take the realities as given because this is the only way to do proper realpolitik.But what I said is that some of the really key principles that have been guiding the work on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Israeli-Arab conflict are now under pressure. And the only place where it is relevant to reset a way forward for the international community is based on decisions taken in the Security Council.You can have seminars and conferences all over the place, but then we need to anchor that. We need to anchor any path forward by decisions in the Council. And I think we don't have any time to lose on that.UN News: But what will encourage the countries with influence to push because the Security Council is divided, as we all know, for more than a year now?Tor Wennesland: Well, I mean, the Security Council is not divided on the issue of a two-State solution. It hasn't been for even one of the more than 50 to 60 meetings I have had in this Council for the period I've been here – so that principle is standing.There is a broad consensus internationally around these principles, but they are undermined, and we need to look at that reality very straight on. When the Council had its last political decision eight years back just before Christmas on (resolution) 2334, the Gaza situation was very different.The change in the Gaza situation has never been properly addressed by the Security Council in order to redress the territorial issue, the border issues, the occupation issues - the Council has never had a position on that. And it's not very difficult to apply the same principles that we have been upholding both in the UN Security Council resolution or in the agreements that has been formulated after the Oslo Accords.They need to be reapplied and there needs to be a Palestinian governance structure in the middle if we're going to get to a Palestinian State. And there is a consensus on that as well internationally, so we have to build on what we have, and that's a common understanding on how we apply the principles. But as long as it's not properly formulated, we don't have the framework we need in the aftermath of the conflict that is still unresolved.UN News: Supporters of both sides - Israelis and Palestinians - some of them, they say that the UN is not doing enough, especially on the political side. What would you like to clarify to them about the work of the UN and your own role and work?Tor Wennesland: Well, as I said in the beginning, the scale of this conflict has never been seen before and definitely not seen after the State of Israel was established.We have never had a conflict that has lasted for 14 months. We have never had any conflict of this intensity and with the losses and destruction we are seeing now.For sure we have been working to avoid the escalation we are now seeing in Lebanon and other places in the region, so we have never seen this before in the region or on the ground.So, in the first week of this conflict, that was my focus. Then it's a question of finding a way out of it and forward at the same time as you have very dynamic and intensive warfare ongoing.So, you need to come to a time where you can properly sit down and think clearly on how you get out of it. That's where we are now approaching. We couldn't get that done in November, where we were ready to be a part of the hostage evacuation.We couldn't do it as the war was scaling back and forth, and people were driven around the corners in Gaza. But we are coming to that phase now. So, we always need to get out of a conflict by the realm of diplomacy and decision-making that has a bearing that takes us forward.And, obviously, we need a ceasefire, we need the hostages out, we need a lasting ceasefire, and we need safety. I mean, we need safety for the Palestinians and for the Israelis.I have been in Gaza when we had a temporary lull because of a vaccination campaign conducted by the UN inside and it gave a short breathing space for people massively traumatized.We don't have that ceasefire in place, and we need to then canvass the international community and the regional partners to cement that framework and effort.UN News: Am I right to understand that you're giving the impression that there is some progress right now? We're moving into something?Tor Wennesland: I'm not going to go into details on what is going on and what is not going on. I would have liked to see that we would have had the chance to address some core principles and some ways forward way earlier.That was not possible. But when you work as a diplomat with these things, you have to be patient enough to wait for the time to come and we are getting into that time, but we have to use it smart and fast because otherwise we risk that this is slipping between our fingers.UN News: Before leaving your position, what is the one advice you can give Israelis and Palestinians for one thing they should do to ensure their own safety, security and peace?Tor Wennesland: We have everybody on the ground being massively traumatized, and it will take years, if ever, to sort that out by those who have been exposed. And here is why I'm saying that the international community needs to take a lead, because we are not the ones that have been exposed to the traumas. We need to take a step to the side, understand what's going on, and try to kind of formulate something the parties can somehow accept. And the compromises will always be grey.
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19 November 2024
Lazzarini: Annexation of Gaza won’t create lasting Middle East peace
amid a near-total breakdown in law and order and harassment of the agency’s staff by Israeli soldiers.“More than 100 trucks have been looted, primarily [carrying goods for] UNRWA and the WFP, basically, 80-90 per cent of the convoy on that day,” said Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General.“What does it show? We [began] warning a long time ago about the total breakdown of civil order; until four or five months ago, we still had local capacity, people who were escorting the convoy. This has completely gone.”According to UNRWA, the incident happened on Saturday and involved a 109-truck convoy. “The vast majority of the trucks, 97 in total, were lost and drivers were forced at gunpoint to unload aid,” it said in an online post on X.Israel’s humanitarian responsibility“The Israeli authorities continue to disregard their legal obligations under international law to ensure the population's basic needs are met and to facilitate the safe delivery of aid,” the UN agency insisted.“Such responsibilities continue when trucks enter the Gaza Strip, until people are reached with essential assistance.”In addition to ongoing deadly Israeli bombardment – including of a residential building in northern Beit Lahia at the weekend which left dozens dead, prompting strong condemnation – UNRWA said that critical shortages of flour had forced all eight UN-supported bakeries in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis to operate “at diminished capacity for weeks. Many have been forced to shut down entirely. Without immediate intervention, severe food shortages are set to worsen, further endangering the lives of over two million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive.”No viable alternative to UNRWASpeaking in Geneva on the sidelines of a meeting of the Advisory Committee which is tasked with advising and assisting UNRWA in carrying out its mandate, Mr. Lazzarini reiterated his warning – echoed widely by the international community – that Israeli efforts to dismantle the agency would have terrible consequences on Gazans who rely on it for education, healthcare and livelihoods, unless a viable alternative were put in place.“I keep being asked why is the agency irreplaceable? In fact, it is replaceable by a functioning state…if we do this and we do not have a viable alternative in place, we will create a vacuum. We will also deprive hundreds of thousands of children to the right of education, but by doing this we will also sow the seeds for more extremism, more hate in the future.”Spanish solidarityEchoing that message, Antón Leis, Secretary General and Executive Director of the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development who chairs the Meeting of the Advisory Committee insisted that UNRWA was “irreplaceable and indispensable…for six million Palestine refugees in the Middle East - not just in Gaza - in the entire Middle East”.Mr. Leis underscored the disinformation campaign targeting UNRWA and stressed the need to explain the agency’s crucial grassroots work across the Occupied Palestinian Territories.“It is important also to set the record straight and explain what UNRWA does and what UNRWA does differently from other UN agencies and why - and this is a reality on the ground - why UNRWA is indispensable and irreplaceable.”Search ordealMr. Lazzarini noted that the diplomatic and political campaign against UNRWA was impacting staff on the ground, too: “We had already last week an incident where a female staff member was searched at her home by [an Israel Defense Forces] soldier and when they realized that she's working for UNRWA, basically they told her, ‘How come you work for a terrorist organization?’”Asked what the election of Donald Trump might change, the UNRWA chief maintained the need to listen to the aspirations of Palestinians.“We keep hearing that promoting a lasting peace is a priority and I do not see how you can promote lasting peace without addressing the question of the Palestinians in the region. So, of course, people are extremely worried that it might go in the direction of an annexation, but annexation wouldn't mean a lasting peace in the region if you haven’t addressed the question of the Palestinians.”
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Story
15 November 2024
Israeli war tactics condemned as aid still blocked from reaching north
An update from the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, said that in the last two days alone, “six attempts to deliver lifesaving assistance to besieged areas in North Gaza governorate were blocked”.The missions on Tuesday and Wednesday had aimed to bring food and water to Jabalia, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, along with protection and psychosocial support for children deeply traumatised by 13 months of bombardment.“People are trapped in residential buildings, they are hiding from the ongoing military operations around them, they are running out of food,” said Louise Wateridge, senior emergency officer with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.In comments to the media, Ms. Wateridge relayed testimonies from staff and people in the north who described seeing dead bodies in the streets and a near total absence of emergency healthcare provision which had forced people to use donkey carts to reach barely functioning hospitals.Almost all of Gaza forced to moveAccording to OCHA, approximately 79 per cent of the Gaza Strip remains under active evacuation orders. “Palestinians continue to be directed to areas in and around Al Mawasi, in southern Gaza, that lack basic infrastructure and essential services,” the UN aid agency said.Latest data from the Gazan health authorities indicated that at least 43,736 people have been killed and 103,370 wounded in Israeli military attacks since 7 October 2023, with 24 Palestinians killed and 112 wounded in the last 24 hours.Equivalent to two nuclear bombsThe development came as a UN General Assembly special panel condemned the Israeli military’s tactics in Gaza since war erupted, following the “horrific” Hamas-led terror attacks on 7 October on multiple Israeli targets that killed some 1,250 people and left more than 250 taken hostage.Covering the period from October 2023 to July this year, a report from the panel maintained that Gaza had been hit by some 25,000 tonnes of explosives - equivalent to two nuclear bombs - by early 2024.The massive destruction that has been the result - along with the collapse of water and sanitation systems, agricultural devastation and toxic pollution - are “consistent with the characteristics of genocide” and will have an impact on the health of Gazans for generations, insisted the report’s authors.“The Israeli military’s use of AI-assisted targeting, with minimal human oversight, combined with heavy bombs, underscores Israel’s disregard of its obligation to distinguish between civilians and combatants and take adequate safeguards to prevent civilian deaths,” said the UN Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories.‘Starvation as a method of war’“Through its siege over Gaza, obstruction of humanitarian aid, alongside targeted attacks and killing of civilians and aid workers, despite repeated UN appeals, binding orders from the International Court of Justice and resolutions of the Security Council, Israel is intentionally causing death, starvation and serious injury, using starvation as a method of war and inflicting collective punishment on the Palestinian population,” the Committee maintained.Palestinian women mocked and shamedOn the ground in Gaza, Israeli soldiers were also found to have engaged in “dehumanising, cruel and humiliating behaviour towards Palestinians, including women and children”, the committee said, alleging that troops had shared photos on social media of Palestinian women “aimed at mocking, shaming and humiliating them”.The panel was established by the UN General Assembly in December 1968 to examine the human rights situation in the occupied Syrian Golan, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.The Committee’s Member States - Malaysia, Senegal and Sri Lanka - called on Israel and Palestinian armed groups “to urgently agree to a lasting ceasefire, release all hostages as well as detainees held arbitrarily”. provide unfettered ICRC access to those in detention and open all border crossings to allow life-saving humanitarian aid into Gaza at scale.End ‘smear campaign’ against UNRWAThe panel also condemned the “ongoing smear campaign” against the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and expressed concern at the “deliberate silencing of reporting” on the conflict in Gaza. It said that “escalating media censorship” by Israel and the “suppression of dissent and targeting of journalists” were “deliberate efforts to block global access to information”.The Committee also insisted that social media companies had “disproportionately removed ‘pro-Palestinian content’, in comparison with posts inciting violence against Palestinians”. Its report will be presented to the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly on 18 November 2024.
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Press Release
06 December 2024
Seven attacks on tent encampments in the past two weeks kill 34 Palestinians including 10 children
Yesterday, 4 December, an Israeli airstrike hit a makeshift tent encampment sheltering 21 families in Al Mawasi, Khan Younis, which had been unilaterally declared a “safe humanitarian zone” by the Israeli military. The strike, together with secondary explosions, destroyed all 21 tents and killed at least 23 Palestinians, including at least 4 children and 2 women – one of them pregnant - while seriously injuring others. The Israeli military claims to have targeted “senior Hamas commanders” and alleges that secondary explosions were likely caused by weapons present in the area. However, according to the information available to UN Human Rights Office, it was the gas cylinders for domestic use that appear to have caused these secondary explosions.This is the seventh attack on an IDP tent encampment in the past two weeks, altogether killing at least 34 Palestinians, including 10 children and 3 women. Four of these attacks occurred in the Israeli-declared “humanitarian zone” in Al Mawasi, killing at least 11 Palestinians including a woman who died with her 2 daughters, and 4 additional children.Almost everyone in Gaza has been displaced more than once due to ceaseless Israeli displacement orders and bombardment. In this context, the pattern of attacks on shelters including schools and tent camps raise concerns about Israel's failure to comply with its obligations under International Humanitarian Law including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack. Depending on the circumstances, such strikes may amount to the deliberate targeting of civilians- a war crime and could also amount to crimes against humanity when conducted as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population.The UN Human Rights Office urges the Israeli military to prioritize the protection of civilians in Gaza. We call for independent, impartial and effective investigations for all such attacks on tents sheltering displaced families that have led to the deaths of civilians, including women and children, since the beginning of the war on 7 October 2023 and for accountability for those found responsible. We also urge the Palestinian armed groups to refrain from any activities that may expose civilians to the risk of attacks.
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Press Release
21 October 2024
UN Human Rights Office is concerned over the potential destruction of the Palestinian population in north Gaza
For two weeks since 6 October, the Israeli military has taken measures that make life in North Gaza impossible for Palestinians while repeatedly ordering the displacement of the entire governorate. Israeli authorities prevented the entry of all essential supplies to North Gaza between 1 and 14 October, exacerbating the already dire situation under which food and fuel supplies to the north were dwindling, and many were facing starvation. After 15 October, a token amount of aid seems to have entered the North, but this does not commensurate with the needs of the population.While the Israeli military has demanded that all civilians leave North Gaza, it has continued to relentlessly bomb and attack the area, especially in and around Jabalya Camp. These attacks have made it extremely dangerous for civilians to flee, and the UN Human Rights Office has received reports over the last weeks of Palestinians targeted while fleeing. Many Palestinians in the North have also expressed fears that should they flee; they will never be allowed to return to their homes in North Gaza. Israeli troops have also destroyed residential buildings and attacked schools serving as shelters, resulting in numerous civilian casualties and further limiting available shelter as winter approaches. One strike on a residential block in Beit Lahiya on 19 October killed at least 87 Palestinians according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Keeping with the trend in this escalation, many of the casualties appear to be children and women.The Israeli military’s resumed attacks on two of the three main hospitals in North Gaza put even more pressure on the civilian population. All three hospitals, already damaged in previous IDF attacks, are also struggling with shortages of supplies and fuel. Rescue teams and medics continue to report restrictions and direct and indirect attacks by the Israeli military, hindering lifesaving operations, including the recovery of Palestinians trapped under rubble. Internet services in North Gaza have been disrupted since 19 October, and at least 3 Palestinian journalists were killed in the last 2 weeks, limiting the available information about the conditions of life in North Gaza.Reports also indicate that tens of Palestinian men are being taken into custody by the IDF, raising fears that they may be subjected to arbitrary detention as well as torture and other ill-treatment, especially considering previous violations documented by the UN Human Rights Office. Israel must promptly announce the identity of all those taken into custody and ensure their access to their lawyers and families.We reiterate that all parties must respect and protect civilians. Palestinian armed groups must refrain from deliberately co-locating military objectives and civilians or civilian objects and must take all feasible precautions to protect the civilian population and civilian objects under their control against the effects of attacks. Even where Palestinian armed groups have failed to comply with these norms of IHL, Israeli forces retain their obligations to respect the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions in attack.The UN Human Rights Office reminds the State of Israel of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice on 26 January 2024 that it take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in relation to Palestinians in Gaza. It also reminds Israel that, as the occupying power, it must ensure the provision of food, medical supplies and shelter for the population of Gaza, as also ordered by the International Court of Justice.
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Press Release
09 September 2024
Defending the Right to Learn: Education in the Face of War
According to UN data, the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip has left 625,000 students completely deprived of their access to education, and 23,000 teachers deprived of the ability to deliver learning adequately. Following 7 October all UNRWA schools in the Gaza Strip were closed. Hundreds of thousands of displaced people are now using these schools as shelters. About 93 per cent of school buildings are estimated to have sustained some level of damage. At least 84.6 per cent of schools in Gaza will either need full reconstruction or major rehabilitation work to be functional again.Since the beginning of the war, around 9,000 students and 400 teachers have been killed in the Gaza Strip. In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the total number killed is around 76 students and two teachers.Movement restrictions, military operations, and violence have exacerbated a pre-existing education crisis to unprecedented levels, affecting at least 782,000 students across the West Bank. The threats to the right to education for Palestinian students have never been so serious.Attacks on education have serious, long-term physical and psychological repercussions for students and teachers. Formal teaching and learning have been suspended for over an entire school year now, with no indication as to when they may resume, which may lead to a significant increase in dropout rates. Military use and destruction of schools and other educational institutions remain a constant threat, creating significant barriers to learning, and impacting access to quality, equitable, inclusive, and safe education - which is a human right of all children. António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations highlighted “This important day reminds us of the damage of war on young learners’ bodies, minds, and spirits. From injuries and loss of life to abduction, forced displacement, sexual violence, recruitment to the fighting, and lost opportunities, the risks are enormous”.It is crucial to ensure that every individual has the opportunity to learn and grow in a safe environment. We must stand united in safeguarding our educational institutions, promoting peace, and fostering a culture of respect and understanding to provide consistent, safe, and high-quality education to all Palestinian children.We also echo once again the Secretary-General's call for ‘an immediate cessation of hostilities and a sustained ceasefire in Gaza’ and the ‘immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,’ some of whom are also students.
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Press Release
12 August 2024
International Youth Day: Resilience and Humanitarian Action of Palestinian Youth in Times of War
Relentless airstrikes in densely populated areas, forced displacement and staggering deprivation have resulted in the death of almost 40,000 Palestinians- around a quarter of whom are reported to be youth, brutally disrupting the futures of Palestinian youth in Gaza. While 85% of Gaza's schools have incurred various degrees of damage, all universities have been destroyed. As a result, eighty eight thousand university students in Gaza are unable to continue their education. The extensive damage to educational, social, and cultural institutions will have severe, long-term impacts on the future prospects of youth.Despite high levels of educational attainment, youth unemployment rates are high across the Occupied Palestinian Territory. In Gaza, the war has significantly worsened Gaza’s already severe poverty and pervasive unemployment. ILO warns that unemployment rates will continue to rise, limiting the future potential of Palestinian youth.Centering youth in the humanitarian response and building peace in PalestineDespite the risks, youth are taking action as part of the humanitarian response in Palestine. 23-year-old Atta from Gaza, a member of the Youth Advisory Panel (YAP) says: “I amplified my voice as a survivor of the war to spread awareness about the innocent civilians living in Gaza, sharing their eagerness for just peace and self-determination.” Palestinian youth contribute to humanitarian action by supporting first-response efforts and delivering food and emergency supplies to displaced people. Youth also provide mental health and psychosocial support to displaced people in shelters. Numerous young Gazan journalists are covering events on the ground, with other young Palestinian influencers raising international awareness online.The UN in Palestine actively supports the meaningful youth engagement. Youth should participate not only as beneficiaries but also as leaders and partners in humanitarian response and peacebuilding. Their visions for a brighter, peaceful, and prosperous future are crucial for rebuilding Gaza, and ultimately achieving lasting peace across the region.This year’s International Youth Day theme, “From Clicks to Progress: Youth Digital Pathways for Sustainable Development,” marks the innovative spirit of young individuals who leverage digital technologies for humanitarian action and sustainable development. In Gaza, the electricity and connectivity issues mean that youth can hardly access such pathways. For those youth, and their peers in the West Bank, the UN in Palestine will continue to amplify their voices as they continue to strive to pave the way toward a more sustainable world.
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Press Release
31 July 2024
Israel must immediately end practices of forced eviction that threaten to displace more than eighty Palestinian families from their homes in Batn al-Hawa, Silwan, East Jerusalem.
Overall, around 87 Palestinian families, totalling approximately 600-680 individuals, are facing legal proceedings initiated by settlers to evict them from their homes in Batn al-Hawa. On 9 and 10 July, the Jerusalem District Court rejected the appeals of the Gheith, Abu Nab and Al-Rajabi families against eviction rulings in lawsuits submitted by Jewish Israeli settlers demanding the families' eviction. These families live in nine residential units accommodating over 80 Palestinians, including children, women, elders, and residents with special needs.In one example of particular concern, authorities are escalating steps towards the forced eviction of the Shehadeh family - consisting of 15 people, including 8 children – following the Israeli High Court's rejection of a petition appealing a Supreme Court decision of 11 April 2024 that had ordered the Shehadeh family to vacate their four-story home in Batn al-Hawa, Silwan, East Jerusalem, in favour of Jewish Israeli settlers. On 14 July, the family received an eviction notice demanding that they vacate their home within 20 days, at the expiry of which the settlers could have the eviction order enforced.These cases are examples of an ongoing systematic settlers' campaign and application of a range of laws discriminatorily (some dating to the Ottoman and British Mandate periods), including Israel's Absentees' Property Law and the 1970 Legal and Administrative Matters Law, to uproot Palestinians from their homes, take over their property and implant Israeli settlers in the heart of Palestinian neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem. International humanitarian law prohibits Israel from imposing its own laws in occupied territory, which includes the application of Israeli laws to evict Palestinians from their homes. Furthermore, the laws in themselves are inherently discriminatory against Palestinians, in violation of Israel's international human rights obligations.
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