Pakistan urges UNSC not to remain “a bystander” amid Israeli atrocities in Gaza

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan has called on the UN Security Council not to remain “a bystander” amid the deepening humanitarian crisis in war-shattered Gaza, with Israeli military operations and attacks on civilians seeking aid continuing to exact a devastating toll on lives and infrastructure.

“The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza defies comprehension,” Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN, told the 15-member Council, during a briefing on the situation in the Middle East.

The total number of Palestinian fatalities since 7 October 2023 has surpassed 56,500, mostly women and children, according to Gazan health authorities.

Today’s briefing was convened pursuant to Council resolution 2334 (2016), which requests the Secretary-General to report every three months on its implementation. The resolution demands that Israel cease all settlement activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.

However, discussions extended beyond its scope, covering the risk of famine in Gaza and aid delivery conducted by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — a non-UN mechanism established with support from Israel and the United States.

In sharply worded remarks, the Pakistani envoy described the “new aid distribution mechanism” as not only contrary to international humanitarian law and human dignity, it also places starving civilians in direct danger, forcing them to cross active combat zones in search of food and water.

“The result is a grotesque cycle of horror: over 500 people have been killed while trying to access humanitarian aid,” Ambassador Asim Iftikhar said, adding, “This is a death trap.”

“There is no need to reinvent the wheel with militarized, dangerous and unlawful schemes,” he said, pointing out that the UN already has a proven humanitarian delivery system, grounded in humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence.

“What is needed is unhindered access and the political will to let the UN do its job,” the Pakistani envoy added.

Noting that the violence is not confined to Gaza, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar said that Israel had intensified its military raids, expanded illegal settlements, and enabled unchecked settler violence in the Occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in ‘blatant’ violation of international law.

“The failure to enforce the Council’s own decisions carries grave consequences for global peace and security and undermines the Council’s own authority and credibility,” he added.

Underscoring that Palestine remains the core of the Arab Israeli conflict, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar urged the Security Council to act with urgency and clarity.

In this regard, he outlined the following essential steps:

Israel must immediately cease its military operations in Gaza and the West Bank;

The blockade on humanitarian aid must be lifted fully and unconditionally, and the UN and humanitarian organizations granted safe and unimpeded access;

International support to the Arab League–OIC Plan for Recovery and Reconstruction in Gaza;

Ensure the implementation of the resolution 2334, which is essential to preserving the viability of the two-state solution and preventing irreversible facts on the ground; and,

Credible and irreversible political process to realize the two-State solution, based on the pre-June 1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital of the State of Palestine.

At the outset, Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific at the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, described the worsening impact of ongoing hostilities, as Council members shifted their focus back to Gaza following a brokered ceasefire that paused the conflict between Israel and Iran.

“The level of suffering and brutality in Gaza is unbearable,” Khiari said. “The continued collective punishment of the Palestinian people is unjustifiable.”