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Scroll down for the PDF file.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n The Bulletin can be found in the United Nations Information System\u00a0<\/em>on the Question of Palestine (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵISPAL) at\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/data-collection\/monthly-bulletin\/<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Disclaimer: The texts cited in this Monthly Bulletin have been\u00a0reproduced in their original form<\/u>. The Division for Palestinian Rights is consequently not responsible for the views, positions or discrepancies contained in these texts.<\/em><\/p>\n May 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n Volume XLVIII, Bulletin No. V<\/strong><\/p>\n Contents<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n On 1 May, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Two months ago, the Israeli authorities took a deliberate decision to block all aid to Gaza and halt our efforts to save survivors of their military offensive. They have been bracingly honest that this policy is to pressurize Hamas.<\/p>\n Yes, the hostages must be released, now. They should never have been taken from their families.<\/p>\n But international law is unequivocal: As the occupying power, Israel must allow humanitarian support in. Aid, and the civilian lives it saves, should never be a bargaining chip.<\/p>\n Blocking aid starves civilians. It leaves them without basic medical support. It strips them of dignity and hope. It inflicts a cruel collective punishment. Blocking aid kills.<\/p>\n The humanitarian movement is independent, impartial and neutral. We believe that all civilians are equally worthy of protection. We remain ready to save as many lives as we can, despite the risks. But as the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Secretary-General has made clear, the latest modality proposed by Israeli authorities does not meet the minimum bar for principled humanitarian support.<\/p>\n To the Israeli authorities, and those who can still reason with them, we say again: lift this brutal blockade. Let humanitarians save lives.<\/p>\n To the civilians left unprotected, no apology can suffice. But I am truly sorry that we are unable to move the international community to prevent this injustice. We won\u2019t give up, even if the world has given you every reason to give up on us.<\/p>\n On 2 May, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell\u202fissued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n For two months, children in the Gaza Strip have faced relentless bombardments while being deprived of essential goods, services and lifesaving care. With each passing day of the aid blockade, they face the growing risk of starvation, illness and death \u2013 nothing can justify this.<\/p>\n Families are struggling to survive. They are trapped, unable to flee in search of safety. The land they used to farm has been destroyed. The sea they used for fishing has been restricted. Bakeries are closing, water production is declining, and market shelves are almost bare. Humanitarian aid has provided the only lifeline for children, and now it is close to running out.<\/p>\n In the past month, over 75 per cent of households have reported deteriorating access to water \u2013 they don\u2019t have enough water to drink, are unable to wash their hands when needed, and often forced to choose between showering, cleaning, and cooking.<\/p>\n Vaccines are quickly running out and diseases are spreading \u2013 especially acute watery diarrhoea, which now accounts for 1 in every 4 cases of disease recorded in Gaza. Most of these cases are among children under five, for whom it is life-threatening.<\/p>\n Malnutrition is also on the rise. More than 9,000 children have been admitted for treatment of acute malnutrition since the beginning of the year. Hundreds more children in desperate need of treatment are not able to access it due to the insecurity and displacement.<\/p>\n International humanitarian law requires authorities to ensure that the population under their control is treated humanely. This not only includes ensuring that civilians have the food, medicine, and essential supplies they need, but also ensuring sufficient hygiene and public health standards. All parties to the conflict must allow and facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian assistance. And they must allow and facilitate all relevant Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ entities to carry out those activities for the benefit of the local population.<\/p>\n Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF remains in the Gaza Strip, doing what we can to support and protect children. But the aid blockade and more than 18 months of war are pushing Gaza\u2019s children to the brink. We reiterate our call for the aid blockade to be lifted, for the entry of commercial goods into Gaza, for the release of the hostages, and for the protection of all children.<\/p>\n On 2 May, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Yesterday, the Israeli Security Forces issued two new demolition orders, which would see 106 houses across Tulkarm and Nur Shams camps destroyed. These demolition orders, if enacted, would further entrench the displacement of thousands of Palestine Refugees in the northern West Bank.<\/p>\n Since 2023, Israeli Security Forces have forcibly displaced most residents of Tulkarm and Nur Shams camps, by directly evicting them or by demolishing houses and camp infrastructure, making living conditions so unbearable that residents cannot remain.<\/p>\n The situation has dramatically escalated since the beginning of operation \u2018Iron Wall\u2019, which started in Tulkarm on 27 January 2025, a week after it was launched in Jenin.<\/p>\n These orders continue a trend of mass demolitions conducted by the Israeli Security Forces in northern West Bank camps. They serve punitive and coercive objectives, targeting entire communities.<\/p>\n This practice constitutes collective punishment, categorically prohibited under the Fourth Geneva Convention.<\/p>\n By targeting civilian homes absent of immediate military necessity, the actions of the Israeli Security Forces bring about more than just physical destruction: they inflict lasting trauma and psychological harm. They perpetuate economic hardship. Families lose not only shelter but also their sense of dignity and safety.<\/p>\n These demolitions seek to alter the character of the camps and permanently shatter their social fabric.<\/p>\n Whilst the erasure of buildings or even entire camps will not eradicate the status of Palestine Refugees it will prolong the occupation and obstruct the path to a just solution.<\/p>\n These demolitions must stop, and those displaced be allowed to return to their homes unhindered and without delay.<\/p>\n On 4 May, the Humanitarian Country Team of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, of about 15 Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ entities and some 200 NGOs – both international and local – issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n OCHA warns that air strikes and other attacks continue across the Gaza Strip, with reports that scores of people were killed and hundreds injured over the weekend, including children and other civilians.<\/p>\n Yesterday, the Humanitarian Country Team of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which brings together about 15 Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ entities and some 200 NGOs \u2013 both international and local \u2013 issued a\u00a0statement<\/em><\/a>, speaking with one voice and reaffirming the position taken by Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres and the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, on principled aid operations.<\/p>\n They recalled that for nine weeks now, Israeli authorities have blocked all supplies from entering Gaza \u2013 regardless of how essential they are. This blockade has forced bakeries and community kitchens to shut down, emptied warehouses and left children hungry.<\/p>\n The organizations note that Israeli officials have sought to shut down the existing aid system run by the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and its partners, asking them to instead deliver supplies through Israeli hubs \u2013 under conditions set by the Israeli military \u2013 once the Government agrees to re-open the crossings.<\/p>\n The statement calls on world leaders to use their influence to help lift the blockade now. Aid organizations remain in Gaza and have significant stocks ready to move into the Strip as soon as restrictions are lifted. Once that happens, they are ready to ramp up operations again.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, OCHA reports that robbery and looting have become a daily reality, especially in and around Gaza city. This is in parallel to the depletion of supplies. Businesses are being targeted. There have also been attempts involving Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ warehouses, and in most of those cases, guards have managed to stop them, or the looters find the warehouses already empty, after more than two months of total blockade.<\/p>\n Last week, water pumping and sanitation systems in Beit Lahiya, in North Gaza governorate, went down because fuel had run out. Those services are still not back, as fuel remains unavailable. On Friday, a major water line from Israel was damaged, cutting water supply to northern Gaza, including Gaza city, by half. Only yesterday were teams able to fix it, as this repair work required coordination with the Israeli authorities.<\/p>\n Also yesterday, a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ team managed to retrieve some fuel from a station in Gaza city, after the Israeli authorities facilitated their efforts to reach it. However, much of the fuel reserves remain out of reach because the supply is located in areas where Israeli authorities systematically deny humanitarians access. In Rafah, not a single attempt to retrieve fuel has been facilitated since 18 April.<\/p>\n OCHA stresses that fuel is essential not only to power water wells and treat sewage, but also to keep intensive care units and ambulances running.<\/p>\n Humanitarian teams need Israeli coordination to move through vast areas of Gaza. Since Saturday, most of those attempts, 19 out of 27 planned movements, were denied outright. Other attempts initially received the green light but were then impeded on the ground.<\/p>\n On 6 May, the Bureau of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Palestinian Rights Committee issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Bureau of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Palestinian Rights Committee condemns the unfolding events since the collapse of the Gaza ceasefire on 18 March and the illegal blockade and siege imposed since 2 March 2025 by Israel, the occupying power, that has cut off all food, fuel, medicine, and commercial supplies to the Palestinian civilian population and has already taken thousands of lives through bombardment and deprivation since it broke the ceasefire. Since 18 March, more than 2,308 Palestinians have been killed, part of over 52,400 killed and 118,000 injured, the majority of them women and children, since 7 October 2023, amid relentless bombardment and blockade.<\/p>\n It has been two unbearable months of Israeli siege upon more\u00a0than two\u00a0million people of the Gaza Strip, children, women, older persons, youth and ordinary people who are being collectively punished. The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ World Food\u00a0Programme\u2019s\u00a0announcement<\/em><\/a>\u00a0on 25 April 2025 of the delivery of its last remaining stocks of food, underscores the life and death urgency of the situation which will silently kill even more children and women. Israel\u2019s punitive action, preventing all humanitarian access to Gaza, has compounded conditions of starvation, spread of diseases and deprivation among a population of more than 1.9 million forcibly and repeatedly displaced.\u00a0Such measures flagrantly violate international humanitarian and human rights law, defy the most basic principles of humanity, and must end immediately.<\/p>\n The Committee Bureau calls for an immediate ceasefire and permanent ceasefire, in line with\u00a0Security Council resolution 2735\u00a0(2024)<\/em><\/a>, and for the immediate, unconditional lifting of the blockade, the sustained flow of food, water, fuel, medicine, and other essentials, and full protection for humanitarian personnel and for the civilian population in accordance with international law.<\/p>\n We reject any proposals to displace Palestinians from Gaza under the guise of so-called \u201cvoluntary migration\u201d or \u201credevelopment\u201d to entrench this unlawful occupation. These proposals are inhumane and illegal.\u00a0We urge Member\u00a0States, the Security Council, and all parties with influence to act now before more Palestinian civilians brutally lose their lives. \u00a0The catastrophic situation in Gaza highlights the importance of the Committee Bureau-endorsed ongoing advisory proceedings before the\u00a0International Court of Justice<\/em><\/a>\u00a0on whether Israel violates international law as it prevents the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, international humanitarian organization and states from providing humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians under its brutal occupation. We urge the Court to issue its opinion swiftly, as its guidance is indispensable at this critical juncture and will serve as further guidance for Member States to act in line with their legal, political and humanitarian responsibilities.<\/p>\n The upcoming High-Level International Conference in June, co-chaired by France and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, presents a timely and vital opportunity to mobilize renewed international support toward ending the Israeli unlawful occupation, realizing the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and establishing a viable two-States solution for achieving a just and lasting solution to the Question of Palestine. The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Palestinian Rights Committee stand ready to contribute actively to this effort and strongly support the objectives of the Conference.<\/p>\n On 7 May, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker T\u00fcrk, issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Israel\u2019s reported plans to forcibly transfer Gaza\u2019s population to a small area in the south of the strip and threats by Israeli officials to deport Palestinians outside of Gaza further aggravate concerns that Israel\u2019s actions are aimed at inflicting on Palestinians conditions of life increasingly incompatible with their continued existence in Gaza as a group.<\/p>\n There is no reason to believe that doubling down on military strategies, which, for a year and eight months, have not led to a durable resolution, including the release of all hostages, will now succeed. Instead, expanding the offensive on Gaza will almost certainly cause further mass displacement, more deaths and injuries of innocent civilians, and the destruction of Gaza\u2019s little remaining infrastructure.<\/p>\n This would only compound the misery and suffering inflicted by the complete blockade on the entry of basic goods for almost nine weeks now. Gaza\u2019s residents have already been deprived of all lifesaving necessities, particularly food, with relentless Israeli attacks on community kitchens and those trying to maintain a minimum of law and order. Any use of starvation of the civilian population as a method of war constitutes a war crime.<\/p>\n The only lasting solution to this crisis lies through full compliance with international law, including as articulated by the International Court of Justice in its 2024 Advisory Opinion and its orders on provisional measures.<\/p>\n On 7 May, Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967; George Katrougalos, Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order; Gehad Madi, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants; Gina Romero, Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association; Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; Astrid Puentes Ria\u00f1o, Special Rapporteur on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment ; Paula Gaviria Betancur, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons; Tomoya Obokata, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences Nicolas Levrat, Special Rapporteur on minority issues; Farida Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the right to education; Ashwini K.P. Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; Heba Hagrass, Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities; Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation; Graeme Reid, Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity; Balakrishnan Rajagopal, Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing; Michael Fakhri, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food; Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders: Olivier De Schutter, Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights; Morris Tidball-Binz, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Siobh\u00e1n Mullally, Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children; Jovana Jezdimirovic Ranito (Chair-Rapporteur), Ravindran Daniel, Michelle Small, Joana de Deus Pereira, Andr\u00e9s Mac\u00edas Tolosa, Working Group on the use of mercenaries; and Genevi\u00e8ve Savigny (Chair-Rapporteur), Carlos Duarte, Uche Ewelukwa, Shalmali Guttal, Davit Hakobyan, Working Group on the rights of peasants and other people working in rural areas and Bina D\u2019Costa (Chair), Barbara G. Reynolds, Isabelle Mamadou, Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair), Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krsti\u0107, and Haina Lu, Working group on discrimination against women and girls, issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Escalating atrocities in Gaza present an urgent moral crossroads and States must act now to end the violence or bear witness to the annihilation of the Palestinian population in Gaza, an outcome with irreversible consequences for our shared humanity and multilateral order, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ experts warned today, demanding immediate international intervention.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile States debate terminology, is it or is it not genocide? – Israel continues its relentless destruction of life in Gaza, through attacks by land, air and sea, displacing and massacring the surviving population with impunity,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n \u201cNo one is spared, not the children, persons with disabilities, nursing mothers, journalists, health professionals, aid workers, or hostages. Since breaking the ceasefire, Israel has killed hundreds of Palestinians, many daily, peaking on 18 March 2025 with 600 casualties in 24 hours, 400 of whom were children.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is one of the most ostentatious and merciless manifestations of the desecration of human life and dignity,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n The aggression has transformed Gaza into a landscape of desolation, where nearly half of the casualties are children and thousands remain displaced. The group of experts cited over 52,535 deaths, of which 70 percent continue to be women and children, and 118,491 injuries as of 4 May 2025.<\/p>\n Since March 2025, coinciding with the end of the ceasefire, Israel has reinstated an even harsher blockade on Gaza, effectively trapping its population in misery, hunger, and disease. \u201cUnder constant bombardment, amid homes reduced to rubble, streets turned into zones of terror and a devastated environment, 2.1 million survivors are facing the direst humanitarian crisis,\u201d the experts said. \u201cFood and water have been cut off for months, inducing starvation, dehydration, and disease, which will result in more deaths becoming the daily reality for many, especially the most vulnerable.\u201d<\/p>\n Amid this carnage, Israeli statements that fluctuate between outright blocking of aid and conditional releases incumbent on other strategic goals, showcase a clear intent to wield starvation as a weapon of war, and uncertainty in the population for a basic need, increasing the risk for trauma and mental health injuries, they warned.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only is delivering humanitarian aid one of Israel\u2019s most critical obligations as the occupying power, but its deliberate depletion of essential necessities, destroying of natural resources and calculated push to drive Gaza to the brink of collapse further corroborates its criminal responsibility,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n \u201cThese acts, beyond constituting grave international crimes, follow alarming,\u00a0documented patterns<\/em><\/a>\u00a0of genocidal conduct.\u201d<\/p>\n The experts called on states to transcend rhetoric and take enforceable action to immediately end the carnage and ensure accountability for perpetrators.<\/p>\n \u201cThe world is watching. Will Member States live up to their obligations and intervene to stop the slaughter, hunger, and disease, and other war crimes and crimes against humanity that are perpetrated daily in complete impunity?\u201d<\/p>\n International norms were established precisely to prevent such horrors. Yet, as millions protest globally for justice and humanity, their cries are muted. This situation conveys a deadly message: Palestinian lives are dispensable, and international law, if unenforced, is meaningless,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n They recalled that the Palestinian right to self-determination is irrevocable. \u201cStates must act swiftly to end the unfolding genocide, dismantle apartheid, and secure a future in which Palestinians and Israelis coexist in freedom and dignity.<\/p>\n \u201cArrest warrants from the ICC<\/em><\/a>\u00a0against Israeli leaders for war crimes and crimes against humanity require immediate action and compliance.\u00a0The ICJ Advisory Opinion<\/em><\/a>\u00a0mandates an end to the prolonged occupation, and the deadline the General Assembly has set is 17 September 2025,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n Continuing to support Israel materially or politically, especially via arms transfers, and the provision of private military and security services risks complicity in genocide and other serious international crimes, they warned.<\/p>\n \u201cThe decision is stark: remain passive and witness the slaughter of innocents or take part in crafting a just resolution. The global conscience has awakened, if asserted, despite the moral abyss we are descending into, justice will ultimately prevail,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n On 9 May, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA, WHO held a Gaza aid-related press <\/em>briefing<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Israel\u2019s plan to take control of relief assistance in Gaza risks increasing the suffering of families already exhausted by 18 months of war by putting their lives in danger and inciting more displacement, using aid as \u201cbait\u201d, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ humanitarians said on Friday.<\/p>\n Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Children\u2019s Fund (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF) spokesperson James Elder told journalists in Geneva that the Israeli proposal to create a handful of aid hubs exclusively in the south of the Strip would create an \u201cimpossible choice between displacement and death\u201d.<\/p>\n The plan \u201ccontravenes basic humanitarian principles\u201d and appears designed to \u201creinforce control over life-sustaining items as a pressure tactic\u201d, he said. \u201cIt\u2019s dangerous to ask civilians to go into militarized zones to collect rations\u2026 humanitarian aid should never be used as a bargaining chip\u201d.<\/p>\n In addition, Gaza\u2019s most vulnerable individuals, the elderly, children with disabilities, the sick and the wounded who cannot travel to designated distribution zones, will face \u201chorrendous challenges\u201d accessing aid, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF spokesperson insisted.<\/p>\n The Gaza Strip has been under a complete aid blockade for more than two months and humanitarians have warned repeatedly that food, water, medicines and fuel have been running out.<\/p>\n The Israeli aid distribution plan presented to Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ humanitarians envisages only 60 aid trucks per day entering Gaza, \u201cone-tenth of what was being delivered during the ceasefire\u201d between Israel and Hamas which held from 19 January to 18 March, Mr. Elder explained.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not nearly enough to meet the needs of 1.1 million children, 2.1 million people,\u201d he insisted. \u201cThere is a simple alternative: lift the blockade, let humanitarian aid in, save lives.\u201d<\/p>\n The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ agency spokesperson also expressed concern that the Israeli plan risks separating family members \u201cwhile they move back and forth to try and get aid\u201d from the designated locations in a territory that \u201clacks any safety\u201d amid ongoing bombardments.<\/p>\n Stressing the success of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ-led aid scale up during the ceasefire, humanitarian affairs coordination office spokesperson Jens Laerke urged the Israeli authorities to \u201cfacilitate the aid that we and our partners have available just a few kilometres away\u201d just outside Gaza.<\/p>\n Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA, the largest aid provider in the Strip, said that the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ agency has \u201cover 3,000 trucks of aid\u201d that are stuck outside Gaza.<\/p>\n Juliette Touma, Director of Communications, deplored the fact that such a \u201cbig dollar figure\u201d was going to waste, when the food could be reaching hungry children and when medicine could be used to treat people with chronic diseases.<\/p>\n \u201cThe clock is ticking. The gates must reopen, the siege must be lifted as soon as possible,\u201d she insisted, while calling for the release of Israeli hostages and a return to a standard flow of humanitarian supplies.<\/p>\n Inside Gaza, aid teams warn that the situation is desperate. \u201cEven those [food] lines are now gone because food is running out,\u201d said Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s Ms. Touma.<\/p>\n In an update on Thursday, OCHA said that more than 80 community kitchens have been forced to shut since late April, owing to the lack of supplies. This number is rising \u201cby the day\u201d, fuelling \u201cwidespread\u201d hunger in Gaza, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ aid coordination office said.<\/p>\n Rebutting Israeli allegations that aid reaching Gaza has been diverted by militant groups, both Ms. Touma and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ World Health Organization (WHO) spokesperson Dr. Margaret Harris described \u201cend-to-end\u201d systems put in place to counter this risk.<\/p>\n \u201cOur supplies are reaching the health facilities they\u2019re meant to serve,\u201d said Dr. Harris, adding that the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ health agency had not witnessed any aid diversion within the health care system.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is not about failure of aid delivery within Gaza. It is about not being allowed to bring it in,\u201d Dr. Harris concluded.<\/p>\n In a further note of caution about the Israeli plan, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF\u2019s Mr. Elder insisted that the proposed use of facial recognition as a precondition to access aid ran against all humanitarian principles to \u201cscreen and monitor beneficiaries for intelligence and military purposes\u201d.<\/p>\n He recalled that the ceasefire earlier this year had resulted in a \u201chuge\u201d improvement in children\u2019s nutrition.<\/p>\n \u201cIt meant food in the markets, repaired water systems\u2026It meant people could access health care safely. It meant health care facilitators had medicines that they need.\u201d<\/p>\n Fast forward to today and food, water, medicines, \u201ceverything for a child to survive\u201d, is being blocked, Mr. Elder said \u2014 \u201cand in many ways, boastfully blocked\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only thing entering Gaza right now is bombs.\u201d<\/p>\n On 9 May, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIsrael continues to inflict unimaginable suffering on the people living under its occupation, whilst rapidly expanding confiscation of land as part of its wider colonial aspirations. What we are witnessing could very well be another Nakba\u201d, warned a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Special Committee as it concluded its annual field mission to Amman.<\/p>\n Appointed by the General Assembly in 1968 to investigate Israeli practices in Palestinian and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967, the Special Committee heard firsthand from numerous interlocutors how policies, actions and practices of the Government of Israel continue to lead to mass and indiscriminate murder of civilians, enforced disappearances, ethnic cleansing and the total subjugation of those under its occupation and apartheid system.<\/p>\n \u201cAccording to testimonies, it is evident that the use of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including sexual violence, is a systematic practice of the Israeli army and security forces, and is widespread in Israeli prisons and military detention camps,\u201d the Special Committee said. \u201cThe methods read as a playbook of how to try to humiliate, derogate, and strike fear into the hearts of individuals; first comes sexual harassment, inappropriate touching of private parts, then sexual abuse, then the threat of rape, and then rape itself, including gang rape, and often with foreign objects such a sticks and batons, against men, women, and even children.\u201d<\/p>\n The Committee\u2019s visit took place as the Government of Israel continued to implement a total blockade on aid for Gaza, weaponizing the right to food. \u201cIt is hard to imagine a world in which a government would implement such depraved policies to starve a population to death, whilst trucks of food are sitting only a few kilometres away. Yet, this is the sick reality for those in Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n The Committee expressed regret that Israel did not respond to its request for consultations or provide access to Israel, the Occupied Palestinian Territory or the occupied Syrian Golan.<\/p>\n \u201cIsrael\u2019s persistent refusal to engage with us and other Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ mandated bodies, or to abide by resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly and binding orders and advisory opinions of the International Court of Justice, reveals its total disregard for international law and its obligations as a Member State of the United Nations,\u201d the Special Committee said.<\/p>\n \u201cIsrael clearly feels it has full impunity to commit horrendous crimes and will never be held accountable for its actions, policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the Syria Golan,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe occupation must end. Only when this happens will grave human rights violations end,\u201d the Special Committee said. \u201cImpunity cannot be accepted.\u201d<\/p>\n The Special Committee urged States with influence to use all political, economic pressure and all means at their disposal to force the Israeli Government to stop its unlawful policies and practices and hold it accountable for the vast war crimes and crimes against humanity already committed.<\/p>\n \u201cThe humanitarian blockade must end now, and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA must be able to perform its unique mandate and deliver essential services. Arms sales and military support must also stop, including via private companies and state-owned enterprises. The world cannot stay silent,\u201d the Special Committee said.<\/p>\n On 9 May, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n With food aid supplies now completely exhausted in Gaza and border crossings still sealed, the\u00a0Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(CERD) today issued an urgent call for immediate humanitarian access and a lasting ceasefire, warning of catastrophic consequences for the civilian population.<\/p>\n The Committee, currently convening in Geneva for its latest session, which ends today, issued its statement hours after the World Central Kitchen announced it was forced to shut down its remaining soup kitchens across Gaza due to a lack of food.<\/p>\n The World Food Programme previously raised the alarm of the total collapse of food aid operations in the besieged enclave. In late April, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ food agency announced that all of its food reserves in Gaza had been depleted, and ongoing restrictions at key border crossings had halted the entry of additional supplies.<\/p>\n The food exhaustion in Gaza, combined with the widespread destruction or serious damage to water and electricity infrastructure, are \u201cplacing the civilian population\u2014especially vulnerable groups such as children, women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities\u2014at imminent risk of famine, disease, and death,\u201d the Committee said.<\/p>\n The Committee also raised grave alarm at the intensification of Israeli military operations across the Gaza Strip since early March, citing indiscriminate bombardments and expanded ground incursions, \u201cwhich have dramatically worsened the humanitarian crisis and severely endangered the civilian population.\u201d<\/p>\n Invoking its early warning and urgent action procedures, the Committee recalled its\u00a02024 decision<\/em><\/a>, which raised serious concerns regarding Israel\u2019s obligations under international law to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.<\/p>\n It also drew attention to the broader deterioration of conditions across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and the West Bank, where patterns of mass displacement and settler violence are increasingly mirroring those in Gaza.<\/p>\n The Committee urged the State of Israel to \u201clift all barriers to humanitarian access, allow the immediate and unimpeded entry of humanitarian aid, and cease all actions obstructing the provision of essential services to the civilian population in Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n Furthermore, it called on all States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination to fulfil their international obligations by taking immediate and appropriate measures to prevent further escalation of hostility and to ensure the protection of civilians.<\/p>\n All States have to \u201ccooperate to bring an end to the violations that are taking place and to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, including by ceasing any military assistance,\u201d the Committee further urged.<\/p>\n On 12 May, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs shared the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres is alarmed by the findings, released today, that one in every five people in\u00a0Gaza\u00a0is facing starvation, while the entire population is facing high levels of acute food insecurity and the risk of famine, according to the latest\u00a0snapshot<\/em><\/a>\u00a0by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).<\/p>\n The Secretary-General is especially alarmed that the vast majority of children in Gaza are facing extreme food deprivation. This is now confirmed by 17 Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ agencies and NGOs in the IPC report.<\/p>\n According to the latest analysis, 470,000 people in Gaza are facing catastrophic hunger, IPC Phase 5, the highest level, and the entire population is experiencing acute food insecurity. The report also projects that an alarming 71,000 children and more than 17,000 mothers will need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.<\/p>\n Over 70 days into the blanket ban imposed by Israeli authorities on the entry of any supplies into Gaza \u2013 regardless of how critical they are for people\u2019s survival, stocks have run out, bakeries have shut down, community kitchens are closing daily, and people are starving. This is not a natural disaster but a human-made catastrophe that the world should not allow.<\/p>\n The way to address this crisis should be clear: open up Gaza so that aid and other essential supplies can reach everyone who needs them, wherever they are.<\/p>\n Humanitarian teams on the ground have pre-positioned enough supplies \u2013 including more than 116,000 metric tons of food assistance, to respond to people\u2019s needs at scale quickly and efficiently, as they did during the 42-day ceasefire earlier this year. These stocks are enough to feed 1 million people for up to four months. But to accomplish that, the crossings into Gaza must open immediately, and international humanitarian law must be fully respected.<\/p>\n Earlier today, the World Food Programme (WFP) and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF\u00a0warned<\/em><\/a>\u00a0that hunger and malnutrition have intensified sharply since all aid was blocked from entering Gaza on 2 March, reversing the clear humanitarian gains seen during the ceasefire earlier this year.<\/p>\n WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain said families are starving while the food they need is sitting at the border. \u201cIt\u2019s imperative that the international community acts urgently to get aid flowing into Gaza again,\u201d she said. \u201cIf we wait until after a famine is confirmed, it will already be too late for many people.\u201d<\/p>\n Partners on the ground in Gaza report that the number of hot meals served by those community kitchens that are still operating is declining very quickly. Today, about 260,000 meals have been prepared and delivered across the Gaza Strip. That marks a decrease compared to 840,000 meals last Wednesday, a 70 per cent reduction of 580,000 daily meals in just five days.<\/p>\n OCHA stresses that humanitarian assistance is not limited to food; it includes visiting people in their communities, assessing what they need, identifying those at risk of being left behind, and mobilizing support across sectors, food, but also water, hygiene, health, nutrition, education, protection and beyond.<\/p>\n OCHA underscores that under the ongoing blockade, medical supplies and shelter materials are also urgently needed. Healthcare in Gaza is hanging by a thread, with hospitals facing mass casualty incidents amid severe shortages of supplies, equipment, blood and staff. The fuel that powers healthcare and water facilities is also being rationed and running out.<\/p>\n Principled humanitarian aid means reaching people wherever they are and based on what they need. Israel, as the occupying power, must facilitate humanitarian relief for people in need throughout Gaza.<\/p>\n On 12 May, the World Health Organization issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The risk of famine in Gaza is increasing with the deliberate withholding of humanitarian aid, including food, in the ongoing blockade.<\/p>\n The entire 2.1 million population of Gaza is facing prolonged food shortages, with nearly half a million people in a catastrophic situation of hunger, acute malnutrition, starvation, illness and death. This is one of the world\u2019s worst hunger crises, unfolding in real time.<\/p>\n The\u00a0latest food security analysis was released today\u00a0by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) partnership, of which WHO is a member.<\/p>\n \u201cWe do not need to wait for a declaration of famine in Gaza to know that people are already starving, sick and dying, while food and medicines are minutes away across the border,\u201d said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. \u201cToday\u2019s report shows that without immediate access to food and essential supplies, the situation will continue to deteriorate, causing more deaths and descent into famine.\u201d<\/p>\n Famine has not yet been declared, but people are starving now. Three quarters of Gaza\u2019s population are at \u201cEmergency\u201d or \u201cCatastrophic\u201d food deprivation, the worst two levels of IPC\u2019s\u00a0five level scale of food insecurity and nutritional deprivation.<\/p>\n Since the aid blockade began on 2\u00a0March 2025, 57 children have reportedly died from the effects of malnutrition, according to the Ministry of Health. This number is likely an underestimate and is likely to increase. \u00a0If the situation persists, nearly 71 000 children under the age of five are expected to be acutely malnourished over the next eleven months, according to the IPC report.<\/p>\n People in Gaza are trapped in a dangerous cycle where malnutrition and disease fuel each other, turning everyday illness into a potential death sentence, particularly for children. Malnutrition weakens the bodies, making it harder to heal from injuries and fight off common communicable diseases like diarrhoea, pneumonia, and measles. In turn, these infections increase the body\u2019s requirement for nutrition, while reducing nutrient intake and absorption, resulting in worsening malnutrition. With health care out of reach, vaccine coverage plummeting, access to clean water and sanitation severely limited, and increased child protection concerns, the risk of severe illness and death grows, especially for children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, who urgently need treatment to survive.<\/p>\n Pregnant and breastfeeding mothers are also at high risk of malnutrition, with nearly 17 000 expected to require treatment for acute malnutrition over the next eleven months, if the dire situation does not change. Malnourished mothers struggle to produce enough nutritious milk, putting their babies at risk, while the delivery of counselling services for mothers is heavily compromised. For infants under six months, breastmilk is their best protection against hunger and disease, especially where clean water is scarce, as it is in Gaza.<\/p>\n The long-term impact and damage from malnutrition can last a lifetime in the form of stunted growth, impaired cognitive development, and poor health. Without enough nutritious food, clean water, and access to health care, an entire generation will be permanently affected.<\/p>\n The plan recently announced by Israeli authorities to deliver food and other essential items across Gaza via proposed distribution sites is\u00a0grossly inadequate to meet the immediate needs of over two million people. WHO echoes the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ\u2019s call for the global humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality to be upheld and respected and for unimpeded humanitarian access to be granted to provide aid based on people\u2019s needs, wherever they may be. A well-established and proven humanitarian coordination system, led by the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and its partners, is already in place and must be allowed to function fully to ensure that aid is delivered in a principled, timely, and equitable manner.<\/p>\n The aid blockade and shrinking humanitarian access continue to undermine WHO\u2019s ability to support 16 outpatient and three inpatient malnutrition treatment centres with life-saving supplies, and to sustain the broader health system. The remaining supplies in WHO\u2019s stocks inside Gaza are only enough to treat 500 children with acute malnutrition, a fraction of the urgent need, while essential medicines and supplies to treat diseases and trauma injuries are already running out and cannot be replenished due to the blockade.<\/p>\n People are dying while WHO and partners\u2019 life-saving medical supplies sit just outside Gaza, ready for deployment, with safeguards in place to ensure the aid reaches those who need it most in line with humanitarian principles. WHO calls for the protection of health care and for an immediate end to the aid blockade, which is starving people, obstructing their right to health, and robbing them of dignity and hope. WHO calls for the release of all hostages, and for a ceasefire, which leads to lasting peace.<\/p>\n On 12 May, the Food and Agriculture Organization published the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) <\/em>analysis<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n New IPC analysis reveals alarming escalation in food insecurity due to ongoing hostilities and blockades.<\/p>\n With the imminent risk of famine, agriculture on the brink of total collapse, and the possible outbreak of deadly epidemics in Gaza, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) calls for immediate restoration of humanitarian access and the lifting of blockades.<\/p>\n The urgent call comes in response to the latest Integrated\u00a0Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis<\/em><\/a>\u00a0issued today warning that the entire population of the Gaza Strip, approximately 2.1 million people \u2013 is facing a critical risk of famine following 19 months of conflict, mass displacement, and severe restrictions on humanitarian aid.<\/p>\n According to the report, between 1 April – 10 May 2025, 93 per cent of the population, which translates to 1.95 million people, were classified in Crisis or worse\u00a0(IPC Phase 3 or above)<\/em><\/a>, including 244,000 people, or 12 percent of the population, in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe), and 925,000 (44 percent) in IPC Phase 4 (Emergency).<\/p>\n For the projection period from 11 May to the end of September 2025, the entire population in Gaza is expected to face Crisis or worse acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above).<\/p>\n \u201cThe international community must act now. The immediate restoration of access to humanitarian and commercial supplies at scale is critical. Every delay deepens hunger and accelerates starvation, bringing us closer to famine,\u201d said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we fail to act, we are failing to uphold the right to food, which is a basic human right and the legal protections that uphold it, undermining one of the core principles safeguarding civilian survival.\u201d<\/p>\n Livestock restoration<\/strong><\/p>\n Reestablishing immediate humanitarian access is critical to maintaining minimum local food production, particularly of livestock. Despite efforts from FAO, having already distributed over 2,100 tons of animal feed and veterinary kits to more than 4 800 herders in Gaza \u2013, current supplies fall far short of growing needs. More veterinary kits, animal feed, and other supplies are ready to be deployed by FAO and partners as soon as access is granted.<\/p>\n Commercial production of livestock has largely ceased, with most operations now limited to household-level production for self-consumption. Even with drastically reduced livestock numbers, sheep down to 36 percent, goats to 39 percent, cattle to 3.8 percent, layers and broilers to 1.4 percent, and working animals to 79.5 percent, these remaining animals are vital for household food security. For many families, they provide the last accessible source of milk, eggs, and meat.<\/p>\n Following the ban on all humanitarian and commercial inputs, an additional 20 to 30 percent of livestock are predicted to have perished. Preserving the remaining animals now is essential to prevent irreversible losses that could collapse livestock-dependent livelihoods entirely.<\/p>\n Without feed and veterinary kits, not only do herders lose these critical food sources, but untreated animals also pose serious public health risks by becoming vectors for disease, particularly for those working closely with animals. Immediate access is essential to prevent further losses, maintain basic nutrition, and safeguard public health.<\/p>\n Agriculture on the brink of collapse<\/strong><\/p>\n Before October 2023, around 42 percent of Gaza\u2019s land (over 15 000 hectares) was used for crops, orchards, and livestock grazing. But a\u00a0geospatial assessment<\/em><\/a>\u00a0carried out by FAO and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵOSAT between October and December 2024 reveals that 75 percent of fields once used to grow crops and olive tree orchards have been damaged or destroyed.<\/p>\n More than two-thirds of Gaza\u2019s agricultural wells (1 531 in total), which rely on groundwater for irrigation and agriculture, were no longer functional as of early 2025, severely debilitating irrigation efforts.<\/p>\n A new FAO-Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵOSAT assessment is under way and early indications suggest a further reduction in usable agricultural land, leaving little space to preserve or restore livelihoods.<\/p>\n On 13 May, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher <\/em>briefed<\/em><\/a> the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Security Council.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n Briefing you again on this subject is a grim undertaking.<\/p>\n Before starting, I ask you to reflect, for a moment, on what action we will tell future generations we each took to stop the 21st century atrocity to which we bear daily witness in\u00a0Gaza.<\/p>\n It is a question we will hear, sometimes incredulous, sometimes furious, but always there, for the rest of our lives.<\/p>\n We will surely all claim to have been against it. Maybe we will say we issued a statement? Or that we trusted that private pressure might work, despite so much evidence to the contrary?<\/p>\n Or pretend that we thought a more brutal military offensive had more chance of bringing the hostages home than the negotiations which brought so many hostages home?<\/p>\n Maybe some will recall that in a transactional world we had other priorities. Or maybe we will use those empty words: \u201cWe did all we could.\u201d<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n Let me start with what we see and are mandated by this Council to report.<\/p>\n Israel is deliberately and unashamedly imposing inhumane conditions on civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. For more than 10 weeks, nothing has entered Gaza – no food, medicine, water or tents. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have, again, been forcibly displaced and confined into ever-shrinking spaces, as 70 per cent of Gaza\u2019s territory is either within Israeli-militarized zones or under displacement orders.<\/p>\n As my colleague from the FAO will explain, every single one of the 2.1 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip face the risk of famine. One in five face starvation. Despite the fact that you have funded the food that could save them.<\/p>\n The few hospitals that have somehow survived bombardment are overwhelmed. The medics who have somehow survived drone and sniper attacks cannot keep up with the trauma and the spread of disease. Even today, the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis was bombed, again, with even more civilian casualties reported.<\/p>\n I can tell you from having visited what\u2019s left of Gaza\u2019s medical system that death on this scale has a sound and a smell that does not leave you. As one hospital worker described it, \u201cchildren scream as we peel burnt fabric from their skin\u2026\u201d And yet we hear that \u201cwe did all we could.\u201d<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n Our response as humanitarians is to make a single ask of the Council: let us work.<\/p>\n The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and our partners are desperate to resume humanitarian aid at scale across Gaza in line with the fundamental principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality.<\/p>\n We have a plan. We have shown we can deliver, with tens of thousands of trucks reaching civilians during the ceasefire. We have life-saving supplies ready, now, at the borders.<\/p>\n We can save hundreds of thousands of survivors. We have rigorous mechanisms to ensure our aid gets to civilians, and not to Hamas.<\/p>\n But Israel denies us access, placing the objective of depopulating Gaza before the lives of civilians. It is bad enough that the blockade continues. How do you react when Israeli Ministers boast of it? Or when attacks on humanitarian workers and violations of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ\u2019s privileges and immunities continue, along with restrictions on international and non-governmental organizations.<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n This Council has adopted resolutions that demand all parties to the conflict comply with international humanitarian law and protection of civilians, including humanitarian personnel.<\/p>\n A reminder that Israel also has clear obligations under international humanitarian law. It must treat civilians humanely, with respect for their inherent human dignity. It must not forcibly transfer, deport or displace the civilian population of an occupied territory.<\/p>\n As the occupying power, it must agree to aid and facilitate it. So, for anyone still pretending to be in any doubt, the Israeli-designed distribution modality is not the answer. It practically excludes many, including people with disabilities, women, children, the elderly, the wounded.<\/p>\n It forces further displacement. It exposes thousands of people to harm. It sets an unacceptable precedent for aid delivery not just in the OPT, but around the world. It restricts aid to only one part of Gaza, while leaving other dire needs unmet.<\/p>\n It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip. It is cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement. If any of that still matters, have no part in it.<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n For the record, we have tried. The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ has met 12 times – and again this morning – with the Israeli authorities to discuss this proposed modality. We wanted to find a way to make it possible.<\/p>\n We repeatedly explained the minimum conditions for our involvement on the basis of long-settled fundamental principles: aid based on independent assessments of who needs it, the globally tested and donor-demanded basic requirement, and the ability to deliver aid to all those in need wherever they are.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General set out the relevant international law in his submissions to the International Court of Justice.<\/p>\n And your resolutions have strongly condemned starvation of civilians as a method of warfare and the unlawful denial of humanitarian access. Resolution 2417 demands the Council\u2019s full attention to widespread conflict-induced food insecurity.<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just Gaza. Appalling violence is also increasing in the West Bank, where the situation is the worst in decades.<\/p>\n The use of heavy weaponry, military methods of war, excessive force, forcible displacement, demolitions and movement restrictions. Ongoing, illegal settlement expansion. Entire communities destroyed, refugee camps depopulated. Settlements expanding, and settler violence continuing at alarming levels, sometimes with the support of Israeli forces. Recently, settlers abducted a 13-year-old girl and her three-year-old brother. They were found tied to a tree. Do we also say to them that \u201cwe did all we could?\u201d<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n There is, I fear, a broader context here. For the past 19 months Palestinian journalists, civil society and individuals have live-streamed their destruction to the world. Many have been targeted and killed for their testimony. And during this time, international aid workers have been the only international civilian presence in Gaza, watching and reporting the unfolding horror. We are your eyes and your ears. And be in no doubt that we feel the weight of that responsibility, to you, to the communities we serve and to the world.<\/p>\n And so, we have briefed this Council in great detail on the extensive civilian harm that we witness daily: death, injury, destruction, hunger, disease, torture, other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, repeated displacement, on a large scale.<\/p>\n We have described the deliberate obstruction of aid operations and the systematic dismantling of Palestinian life, and that which sustains it, in Gaza. So, you have that information. And now, the ICJ is considering whether a genocide is taking place in Gaza. It will weigh the testimony that we have shared. But it will be too late.<\/p>\n Recognizing the urgency, the ICJ has indicated clear provisional measures that must be implemented now, yet they have not.<\/p>\n Previous reviews of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ\u2019s conduct in cases of large-scale violations of international human rights and humanitarian law – reports on Myanmar, 2019; Sri Lanka, 2012; Srebrenica and Rwanda, both in 1999 – pointed to our collective failure to speak to the scale of violations while they were committed.<\/p>\n So, for those killed and those whose voices are silenced: what more evidence do you need now? Will you act – decisively – to prevent genocide and to ensure respect for international humanitarian law? Or will you say instead that \u201cwe did all we could?\u201d<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n This degradation of international law is corrosive and infectious. It is undermining decades of progress on rules to protect civilians from inhumanity and the violent and lawless among us who act with impunity.<\/p>\n Humanity, the law and reason must prevail. This Council must prevail. Demand this ends. Stop arming it. Insist on accountability.<\/p>\n To the Israeli authorities: stop killing and injuring civilians. Lift this brutal blockade. Let humanitarians save lives.<\/p>\n To Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups: release all hostages immediately and unconditionally. Stop putting civilians at risk during military operations.<\/p>\n And for those who will not survive what we fear is coming – in plain sight – it will be no consolation to know that future generations will hold us in this chamber to account. But they will. And, if we have not seriously done \u201call we could,\u201d then we should fear that judgement.<\/p>\n \/\u2026<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n<\/a>I. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Relief Chief calls on Israel to lift brutal blockade and let humanitarians save lives<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>II. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF Executive Director: Families are struggling to survive in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>III. Statement by Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Commissioner-General on Israeli Security Forces demolition orders<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>IV. OPT Humanitarian Country Team affirms need for principled aid delivery in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>V. Palestinian Rights Committee Bureau demands immediate lifting of Gaza blockade and welcomes ongoing ICJ proceedings<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VI. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Human Rights Chief\u202fraises alarms over potential forcible transfer of Gaza population<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VII. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ experts say States face defining choice: End unfolding genocide or watch it end life in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VIII. Israel\u2019s aid plan will force Gaza families to choose \u2018between displacement and death\u2019 warn Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ humanitarians<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>IX. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Special Committee on Israeli practices in occupied territories warns of a second Nakba<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>X. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Anti-Racism Committee decries halt to food aid, urges immediate humanitarian access<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XI. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Secretary-General alarmed by worsening hunger crisis in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XII. WHO: People in Gaza are starving, sick and dying as aid blockade continues<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XIII. With famine looming, FAO urges immediate access to save livelihoods and food production<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XIV. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Relief Chief calls on Security Council to act decisively to prevent genocide in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XV. \u201cPeople are already dying of hunger\u201d: FAO on the food security crisis in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n