New York, 29 December 2023
Note: A complete summary of today’s Security Council meeting will be made available after its conclusion.
THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST, INCLUDING THE PALESTINIAN QUESTION
Briefings
KHALED KHIARI, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East and Asia and the Pacific, detailing the “alarming” situation in the Middle East, said that fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas in Gaza continues. Israel continues its intense ground operations, while Hamas continues to fire rockets from Gaza into Israel. “Civilians from both sides — particularly the Gaza Strip — continue to bear the brunt of this conflict,” he said. Expressing grave concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, he called for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire therein. “Further, the risk of regional spillover of this conflict remains high, given the multitude of actors involved,” he said. The continued daily fire across the Blue Line poses great risk to regional stability. There have been several instances of strikes deeper into the territories of Lebanon and Israel, raising the risk of conflict with potentially devastating consequences for the people of both countries. With the risk of miscalculation increasing, it is crucial that all actors immediately de-escalate and return to the cessation of hostilities.
Further, he said attacks on United States bases in Iraq in Syria take place on a daily basis, with Washington, D.C., conducting operations against groups suspected of these actions. There are also reported Israeli air strikes inside Syria, he added. The continued Houthi threats to maritime navigation in the Red Sea are of growing concern, risking further escalation, he observed, adding that the UN continues to encourage de-escalation so that traffic through the Red Sea can return to its normal state.
Across the occupied West Bank, heightened tensions between Israeli security forces and Palestinians, intensive violence and widespread movement restrictions have continued, he said. Since 7 October, 304 Palestinians, including 79 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Meanwhile, four Israelis, including three members of the Israel Defense Forces, have been killed in attacks by Palestinians in the West Bank. Another four Israelis have been killed by Palestinians during an attack in West Jerusalem. Despite the reduction in settler attacks throughout November and December since the spike in violent settler attacks against Palestinians following 7 October, settler violence remains a grave concern. He further spotlighted the deteriorating human rights situation in East Jerusalem. To prevent the endless cycle of violence, he emphasized that the current hostilities throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory must end with a plan to meaningfully advance the parties towards a two-State solution, with Gaza as an integral part of an independent Palestinian State, living side by side with Israel.
MARWAN MUASHER, Vice President for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan, said he wanted to focus on the first day after the war and the prospects for a political settlement. Before that, however, he pointed out that the immediate priority must be ending the war on Gaza. “The Palestinians have suffered enough,” he said, adding that there is no international or humanitarian law that condones the carpet-bombing of civilians the world is witnessing today. He noted that the question that is being asked repeatedly by the international community is “Who is going to rule Gaza after Hamas?” It is the wrong question to pose, if the implication is that this is the endgame as any policy based on this will lead to disastrous results. “The repeated killings of civilians on both Israeli and Palestinian sides, the destruction of Gaza once again, the creation of another potential 1.5 million Palestinian refugees, and the looming danger of mass transfer should teach us that we cannot solve the problems by sticking to old paradigms that did not work,” he said.
The scenarios presented so far are unrealistic because they focus on the day-after Gaza rather than present solutions that address the root cause of the problem: the Israeli occupation. “This is the context in which 7 October took place,” he said. “As abhorrent as targeting of civilians is on both sides, the big prison that Gaza practically was, coupled with the lack of any political horizon in the last 10 years to end the occupation, are factors that cannot be ignored.” He said it was important to acknowledge that the elements necessary for a serious political process are not there since the three parties needed do not seem to be ready. The United States is approaching an election year. The Israeli Government has repeatedly and publicly declared it has no intention of ending the occupation. And no side can claim to represent the Palestinians without elections. “For all these reasons, the stars are not aligned for a political process that is going to be serious,” he said.
He encouraged Council members to engage at least hypnotically in imagining the elements of a process that would learn from the past and would be seen as serious, outlining an eight-point plan that, among other things, included the United States leading a political plan with the clearly defined objective to end the occupation; that settlement activity would be completely frozen, and fresh elections in both Israel, Gaza and the West Bank would be held. “If the international community decides that this is too unrealistic, let us look at what the alternatives might look like,” he said, noting that, by ignoring the root cause of the problem — the occupation — the international community is partly to blame for the situation today. He argued that either a bold decision is taken to end the conflict now and effect a viable two-State solution or the world will have to deal not only with the occupation but the more difficult question of Apartheid. “The choice is ours,” he said.
MARWAN MUASHER, Vice President for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan, said he wanted to focus on the first day after the war and the prospects for a political settlement. Before that, however, he pointed out that the immediate priority must be ending the war on Gaza. “The Palestinians have suffered enough,” he said, adding that there is no international or humanitarian law that condones the carpet-bombing of civilians the world is witnessing today. He noted that the question that is being asked repeatedly by the international community is “Who is going to rule Gaza after Hamas?” It is the wrong question to pose, if the implication is that this is the endgame as any policy based on this will lead to disastrous results. “The repeated killings of civilians on both Israeli and Palestinian sides, the destruction of Gaza once again, the creation of another potential 1.5 million Palestinian refugees, and the looming danger of mass transfer should teach us that we cannot solve the problems by sticking to old paradigms that did not work,” he said.
The scenarios presented so far are unrealistic because they focus on the day-after Gaza rather than present solutions that address the root cause of the problem: the Israeli occupation. “This is the context in which 7 October took place,” he said. “As abhorrent as targeting of civilians is on both sides, the big prison that Gaza practically was, coupled with the lack of any political horizon in the last 10 years to end the occupation, are factors that cannot be ignored.” He said it was important to acknowledge that the elements necessary for a serious political process are not there since the three parties needed do not seem to be ready. The United States is approaching an election year. The Israeli Government has repeatedly and publicly declared it has no intention of ending the occupation. And no side can claim to represent the Palestinians without elections. “For all these reasons, the stars are not aligned for a political process that is going to be serious,” he said.
He encouraged Council members to engage at least hypnotically in imagining the elements of a process that would learn from the past and would be seen as serious, outlining an eight-point plan that, among other things, included the United States leading a political plan with the clearly defined objective to end the occupation; that settlement activity would be completely frozen, and fresh elections in both Israel, Gaza and the West Bank would be held. “If the international community decides that this is too unrealistic, let us look at what the alternatives might look like,” he said, noting that, by ignoring the root cause of the problem — the occupation — the international community is partly to blame for the situation today. He argued that either a bold decision is taken to end the conflict now and effect a viable two-State solution or the world will have to deal not only with the occupation but the more difficult question of Apartheid. “The choice is ours,” he said.
ITAY EPSHTAIN, Special Advisor and Senior Humanitarian Law and Policy Consultant at the Norwegian Refugee Council, underscored that all parties have shown a reckless disregard for the peremptory norms of international law. This includes the basic rules of international humanitarian law — “the very rules they must comply with in all circumstances, breached” — he added. He condemned Hamas’ atrocious violence against Israeli civilians, also calling for the immediate release of all hostages held ultra vires and the humane treatment of Palestinian detainees in keeping with international law. This same legal certainty must also mean a halt to the Israeli offensive, from which ordinary Gazans have no refuge, and indiscriminate Israeli attacks affecting civilians or infrastructure — or causing excessive loss of life, injury or damage — must be condemned. Further, reversing capricious and unlawful limitations on humanitarian relief imposed by Israel — the occupying Power — “remains a normative and operational challenge that must be addressed”, he said.
He went on to point out that, as Israel’s military operations in Gaza drive civilians closer to the southern border, the looming possibility of mass deportation to Egypt grows. This concern follows Israel’s forcible transfer of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians within Gaza, as well as explicit statements by Israeli officials endorsing such deportation without reasonable justification, proper accommodation or services in place or a guarantee of return once hostilities end. He also underscored that, as the international community mobilizes to respond to the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza, armed Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank have intensified their campaign of violence against Palestinians. In recent months, whole communities have been forcibly displaced by such violence, and he stressed: “Israeli authorities are doing next to nothing to prevent these attacks.” Further, such violence is often overlooked by Israeli security forces — and even encouraged by certain Government officials.
The Council should attribute responsibility to Israel, he said, when members of its armed forces allow for — and participate in — settler violence, and when it directly allocates funds and arms to settlement guard squads who often partake in such attacks. As an occupying Power, Israel is responsible for public life, order and safety in occupied territory, and the Council must demand that Israeli authorities respect and protect the rights of Palestinians; abide by the law governing occupation and applicable rules on the use of lethal force; and work to deescalate ongoing violence in the West Bank. “Peace is the only viable solution for civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel,” he stressed, stating that a mutually agreed-upon armistice is a necessary stepping stone to resolving the question of Palestine. Ending the occupation of Palestinian territory is essential to ending the suffering and enabling aid workers to deliver critical relief to those in need, he added.
Statements
MAJED S. F. BAMYA, observer for the State of Palestine, said the killing of Palestinian civilians is not a collateral effect of the war, as it relies by design on mass and indiscriminate killing of civilians. Relatedly, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is not the consequence of the war, but a tool employed by Israel to force the Palestinians out. The famine under way is a method of war and the collapse of the health system is the result of premeditated attacks against hospitals and medical personnel. The mass arrest, filmed humiliation and enforced disappearance and summary executions aim at terrorizing the Palestinian people as a whole. For over 80 days, Palestinians — besieged, bombarded, displaced and starved — have been fighting for their lives.
Highlighting undeniable evidence of the criminal nature of this assault, he asked: “What do you say on behalf of a people enduring genocide?” The killers demand apologies from those criticizing them for their crimes and recognition from the world that they are “the most moral army in the world”. Despite the Council calling for protection of civilians, immediate safe, unhindered and expanded humanitarian access, the delivery of humanitarian assistance throughout the Gaza Strip and respect for the laws of war, Israel has reacted with disregard. “Why are they getting away with murder at this unprecedented scale?”, he asked, noting that Israel has never been held accountable. “That is why they steal our lives, our land, our resources, our money, our past, present and future in broad daylight,” he added.
One day the massacres will stop, he said, adding: “But how will we get over the mass graves, the inability to bury our loved ones? […] Seeing them in plastic bags […] how will we get over 1,000 Palestinian children amputated without anaesthesia? Can you hear their screams? Can you hear their pain? Can you imagine if they were your own children?” One day the massacres will stop and Palestinians will be asked to move on, to be peaceful and grateful that this horrible chapter is over, until the next one begins. This is the ultimate expression of double standards, the ultimate expression of racism and dehumanization of Palestinians, he asserted, noting that the other side is never asked to move on and be peaceful if Israelis are killed.
The world is discovering the true Gaza while Israel is destroying it, he said, noting that Palestinians — despite repeated assaults and a decade and a half of blockade — somehow preserved hope, built homes only to see them destroyed, and built them once more. “That is what Israel is attacking — hope, the ability of our people to resurrect — they want to make sure that Palestinians in Gaza have no homes to return to, they want to make sure they have no life to return to, they want to make sure that life in Gaza is no longer possible,” he said. Israel’s aim of “voluntary migration” has led to the death of 21,000 Palestinians who are faced with two options: death or forced displacement. He further underscored that the past three months have been the deadliest the West Bank has witnessed in decades, including for children. “Our suffering is […] man-made, occupation-made,” he said, noting that the powerlessness of some world Powers is not inevitable.
GILAD ERDAN (Israel) said he was shocked to be sitting in the Council Chamber today, shocked by the focus of this briefing, by the blatant lies being spread and the utter dissonance from the reality on the ground. But, most of all, he said, he was “shocked by this Council’s willingness to waste its time focusing on such a marginal, extremist phenomenon while the whole region is on fire”. The true reason for this raging fire is ignored, he said, noting that rockets are continually being fired at Israel. Yet, these brazen attacks on civilians do not warrant an urgent briefing here in this Council. “Is this violence occurring magically on its own?”, he asked. “Is it not clear that genocidal terrorists are seeking to murder Israeli citizens every single day? This Council is quick to show solidarity with civilians across the Middle East so long as they are not Israelis.”
When it comes to innocent Israeli civilians being targeted every day, why is this Council silent and why has it not condemned the rocket fire from Lebanon, Syria and Yemen, he asked. The situation is reaching a point of no return and if these attacks persist, Israel will ensure these acts of terror stop. “Why have you not spoken up?”, he asked. “Why is it that the UN remains silent in the face of terror only when it is directed against Israel?” He noted that 50,000 Israeli civilians have been displaced along the northern border because of Iranian-backed attacks by Hizbullah from Lebanon — attacks that are a flagrant violation of Israeli’s sovereignty and international law and Security Council resolutions, especially resolution 1701 (2006). “If these attacks continue […] the situation will escalate and may lead to a full-scale war,” he said, adding that Lebanon must be held accountable. “Israel will defend itself,” he said.
Israel is currently fighting a war for its very future against genocidal Hamas terrorists, he said. Eighty-four days after 1,300 Israelis were butchered and with 129 people still being held hostage in Hamas’ terror tunnels, this Council has not even condemned the Hamas Nazi attacks. “Does this Council truly believe that the disgraceful act of a handful of extremists — Israeli extremists —are the true roadblock to a solution? Is this the topic that the Council should be focused on today?”, he asked. He said Israel’s police force is cracking down on acts of violence which are mostly damage to property. Meanwhile, rockets are raining down on Israel’s north and south, and entire families have been burned alive by Hamas-ISIS.
There were no Israelis in the West Bank in 1948 nor in 1967, yet the Palestinians and Arab countries still sought to annihilate Israel. “Do you not see the absurdity? When will you address the true obstacle to peace in our region?”, he asked, adding that, last week, there were four instances of extremist violence against Palestinians. “If you look at the numbers over the past three months, it is clear that extremist violence is de-escalating, contrary to the focus of this briefing,” he said. Israel condemns every act of violence. And severe action is being taken to combat it. Arrests have been made and Israel makes every effort to bring perpetrators to justice. But, it is marginal issue — and it is in decline, he said.
LANA ZAKI NUSSEIBEH (United Arab Emirates) pointed out that there has not been a Council meeting on the subject where it has not collectively demanded the urgent release of all hostages held in the Gaza Strip. Underscoring that many of the countries present — hers included — must make bold, and perhaps uncomfortable, decisions, she observed: “The alternative is the hellscape of Gaza, expanded into the West Bank, Israel, Lebanon and other parts of the Middle East.” In the face of the carnage in Gaza, a reawakened sense of historic and moral responsibility must manifest in decisive action. When leaders proudly claim that their life’s work was preventing the two-State solution, openly call for Palestinians to be expelled from their land and routinely threaten other countries with a fate similar to Gaza’s, the international community must recognize the need for a fundamental reset. Adding that nothing about the conflict or where it goes from here was or is inevitable, she called on those present to “give an alternative vision of hope against the nihilistic extremism”.
NAME TO COME (United States) expressed concern regarding the sharp increase in settler violence in the West Bank and the unprecedented number of Palestinian fatalities both in the West Bank and Gaza. “The death of any civilian, whether they were one of the individuals killed by Hamas terrorists on 7 October in Israel or one of the Palestinians killed in the West Bank or Gaza, is a tragedy,” he said. The United States continues to stress to the Israeli Government the importance of preventing extremist settler violence. Washington, D.C., will continue to implement visa restrictions targeting individuals believed to undermine peace and stability in the West Bank. A two-State solution, where Israelis and Palestinians live side-by-side, is a path to lasting peace, he stressed.
The continued control of Gaza by Hamas — “a group that has dedicated its entire existence to the elimination of Israel” — precludes a pathway to a viable two-State solution, he continued. And yet, some Council members cannot bring themselves to condemn Hamas’ brutal terrorist attacks on 7 October. “It’s outrageous and beneath the dignity of this Council,” he added. It is striking that “we hear very few demands of Hamas to stop hiding behind civilians, lay down its arms and surrender”. The conflict must move to a lower intensity phase, with a focus on dealing with the leadership of Hamas and the tunnel network. Israel would welcome a return to a pause in fighting with the further release of hostage. “Hamas, therefore, remains a problem,” he said, adding that Hamas “reneged” on commitments they made during the first pause for hostage releases. Further, he condemned Iran’s support for proxy groups throughout the region.
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Source – UN