Palestine: Gaza Strip Humanitarian Situation Deteriorated in 2018 - Security Council Briefing

Описание: Statement by Ms. Ursula Mueller, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, on the situation in the Middle East (including the Palestinian question).

UN Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Ursula Mueller the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory at its core “remains a protection crisis.” She said, “Violations of international humanitarian and human rights law are a key driver of high levels of acute vulnerability among Palestinians. The international community is mobilizing to provide assistance, but funding is diminishing while needs and constraints continue to grow. Ultimately, the solution is not humanitarian.”

Mueller told the Council that overall, the humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly in the Gaza Strip, has deteriorated in 2018. This included an increase in casualties associated with the demonstrations at the Gaza fence, limitations on the movement of people and goods and financial restrictions.

Palestinian ambassador Riyad Mansour told reporters outside the Council that his country would continue pushing for a two-state solution, adding that there was almost full international consensus on this solution. He asked what “is the advantage to the Palestinian people and their friends to start walking away from this global consensus and entertain new ideas; and to begin the process of building something different than the thing that we invested, we and the international community; tens of years until we reached that moment.”

Mansour said that Palestine could become a full Member of the UN even before the occupation ended if the veto by the United States was removed adding that Palestine had the backing of the majority of the international community for its bid.

Asked about the presence of some Arab nations along side Israel in the Warsaw Conference and whether this was seen as a move away from the Arab Peace Initiative which calls for normalizing ties with Israel only after a peace deal is reached, Arab League ambassador Maged Abdelfattah Abdelaziz said, “It is true that the Warsaw conference was attended by a number of countries. Some countries attended at a certain level, others attended at a different level. Some tried cast a shade of normalization or trying to show some sitting next to others or some talking to others, to try to create a picture that there is normalization going on in secret. However, this is, in our view from the Arab League and the resolutions and decisions taken at the summit and ministerial levels at the Arab League, is inconsistent with the official Arab stance. The official Arab stance is to hold on to the guiding principles to the peace process.”