Majority of speakers at the UNSC emergency session held today to discuss the disastrous situation in the Gaza Strip emphasized the need for an immediate ceasefire.
The United Nations Security Council held today an emergency session to discuss the deteriorating situation in Gaza as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression against it since October 7.
Representative of China Zhang Jun, paid tribute to the Secretary-General for his statement on the seriousness of the situation in Gaza.
“The draft resolution submitted by the UAE reflects the call of the international community, which China supports and co-sponsors because only an immediate ceasefire will save lives and pave the way for the two-state solution,” he said.
“A larger crisis is imminent,” and regional peace and security are “on the precipice”. The world is watching. Member States must act, he warned.
Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative, Dmitriy Polyanskiy, expressed disappointment that the Security Council has not adopted any clear, binding decision demanding – not calling – for the parties to stop the violence, he said.
The discussions here amount only to “empty words”, he added. The primary task is to stop hostilities and “save Palestinian civilians from extermination,” he added.
He quoted from the UN chief’s letter, emphasizing the desperate conditions being faced by civilians.
We hope that all colleagues will find the strength and courage to adopt the draft resolution prepared by the United Arab Emirates, Polyansky added.
Flooding Gaza with seawater by the Israeli military as a tactic of war would amount to a war crime, he said.
Today the Council has a good opportunity “to end this abnormal situation and do what the international community expects of it”, he declared, by passing a ceasefire resolution later today.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Issa Abushahab, Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the UN said that for many Gazans who have never left the enclave, “their entire world is systematically demolished before their eyes”.
He stated the Security Council must act on the crisis when too little aid is getting in and humanitarian workers are unable to deliver it for fear of getting killed.
“Despite the recent temporary pause, the violence and danger to civilians has not abated, in fact, this conflict has now graduated to a new and more dangerous phase,” he added, noting that the siege of Khan Yunis and other parts in southern Gaza has now started.
The Ambassador stressed that there is literally no safe haven for the millions of people trapped and under attack in Gaza.
Source: WAFA
