{"id":304122,"date":"2024-12-09T15:18:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-09T20:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?post_type=document&p=304122"},"modified":"2024-12-12T15:42:43","modified_gmt":"2024-12-12T20:42:43","slug":"remarks-by-phillipe-lazzarini-unrwa-09dec24","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/remarks-by-phillipe-lazzarini-unrwa-09dec24\/","title":{"rendered":"Remarks by Phillipe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA at the Doha Mediation Forum"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

09 December 2024<\/p>\n

(As prepared)<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Excellencies,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ladies and gentlemen,<\/strong><\/p>\n

We are meeting in the shadow of the dystopian horror that is Gaza for a discussion that could not be more timely.<\/p>\n

The rules-based international order that has been in place since the end of the Second World War is fracturing.<\/p>\n

The Geneva Conventions, adopted 75 years ago to protect civilians and non-combatants during conflict, are increasingly challenged and at risk of becoming irrelevant.<\/p>\n

The lack of meaningful action in defense of international law is weakening the foundations of our multilateral system.<\/p>\n

It is fueling resentment in the Global South, where many believe that the values enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in international law do not apply equally.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Nowhere is the\u00a0blatant disregard for international law and the rules-based order\u00a0<\/strong>more apparent than in\u00a0Gaza<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

At least\u00a0252<\/strong>\u00a0UNRWA personnel have been killed in 14 months.<\/p>\n

Two-thirds of our premises have been damaged or destroyed.<\/p>\n

Nearly 600 displaced people have been killed while sheltering in our buildings, seeking the protection of the Â鶹APP.<\/p>\n

Aid convoys have been struck despite coordinating movement with the Israeli Security Forces.<\/p>\n

We have received allegations that the Israeli Security Forces and Palestinian armed groups, including Hamas, have used UNRWA premises for military purposes.<\/p>\n

I have repeatedly condemned this alleged use of our premises and will continue to call for accountability for attacks on UN personnel, premises and operations.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In the\u00a0broader occupied Palestinian territory<\/strong>, the operational space for advocates of human rights and international law is shrinking.<\/p>\n

In occupied East Jerusalem, UNRWA\u2019s headquarters was set on fire.<\/p>\n

Local authorities are attempting to evict us from these premises to build settlements.<\/p>\n

Failing to push back against attempts to intimidate and undermine the Â鶹APP system has set a dangerous precedent.<\/p>\n

Consider how Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire and scaling up humanitarian aid in Gaza are openly defied.<\/p>\n

How the binding orders of the International Court of Justice to prevent genocide in Gaza and end an unlawful occupation are brushed off.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, Israeli officials have described dismantling UNRWA as a goal.<\/p>\n

The Knesset recently adopted two laws that seek to prevent all UNRWA services in the occupied Palestinian territory.<\/p>\n

The legislation is premised on the misguided belief that if UNRWA disappears, so will the issue of Palestine Refugees.<\/p>\n

Dismantling UNRWA will not terminate the refugee status of Palestinians \u2013 this status exists independently of the Agency \u2013 but it will severely harm their lives and future.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The Agency has also been subjected to a\u00a0fierce, global disinformation campaign<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Intense diplomatic lobbying by the Government of Israel and affiliated groups has targeted parliaments and governments in top donor countries.<\/p>\n

Billboards and ads accusing UNRWA of terrorism have started to appear in New York, Geneva, Rome, Stockholm and other cities.<\/p>\n

They are paid for by the Government of Israel.<\/p>\n

Google ad campaigns redirect those seeking information about the Agency to websites replete with lies.<\/p>\n

This is not merely \u201cdisinformation\u201d.<\/p>\n

It is wartime propaganda that puts our staff in the occupied Palestinian territory in mortal danger.<\/p>\n

It also creates a permissive environment for the harassment of UNRWA representatives in Europe and the United States.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Implementing the Knesset legislation to end UNRWA\u2019s services in the occupied Palestinian territory will have catastrophic consequences.<\/p>\n

In Gaza<\/strong>, dismantling UNRWA will collapse the Â鶹APP humanitarian response, which relies heavily on the Agency\u2019s infrastructure.<\/p>\n

The absence of UNRWA means the absence of education.<\/p>\n

Palestinians value education highly \u2013 it is the only asset from which they have not been dispossessed.<\/p>\n

Without a capable public administration or state, only UNRWA can deliver education to more than 660,000 girls and boys in Gaza.<\/p>\n

Are we willing to let these children be denied the right to education?<\/p>\n

To sacrifice an entire generation, and sow the seeds for marginalization and extremism?<\/p>\n

It is also horrifying that people enduring a devastating war might be left without basic healthcare.<\/p>\n

Before the war, UNRWA addressed 70 to 80 percent of primary healthcare needs in Gaza.<\/p>\n

We still provide 16,000 medical consultations every day.<\/p>\n

In the\u202fWest Bank<\/strong>, UNRWA\u2019s collapse would deprive at least 50,000 children of education, and half a million Palestine Refugees of primary healthcare.<\/p>\n

The Agency is the second largest employer after the Palestinian Authority \u2013 its collapse will further fuel the current instability.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Let me state the obvious \u2013 UNRWA is not a party to the Israel-Palestine conflict.<\/p>\n

It is a Â鶹APP agency mandated by the General Assembly to provide essential services to Palestine Refugees pending a political solution.<\/p>\n

Today, however, the Agency has become a soft target for warring parties that view its presence and activities as a threat.<\/p>\n

Israel accuses UNRWA of being infiltrated by Hamas.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Hamas has repeatedly and publicly accused UNRWA of colluding with the Israeli occupation.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Humanitarian work can only succeed when shielded by a robust international legal and political framework.<\/p>\n

Without this, humanitarians \u2013 however selfless and courageous \u2013 cannot stay and deliver.<\/p>\n

The tools of humanitarian diplomacy \u2013 negotiation, mediation and enforcing international law and humanitarian principles \u2013 are indispensable for enabling humanitarian work.<\/p>\n

Humanitarian diplomacy must also be complemented by efforts to counter polarizing narratives and dehumanizing rhetoric.<\/p>\n

Humanitarian diplomacy and humanitarian assistance are mutually reinforcing \u2013 when humanitarians can operate safely and independently, we can foster the conditions for diplomacy and political processes to succeed.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The international community has charted a broadly agreed path towards peace between Israelis and Palestinians.<\/p>\n

The key components are enshrined in multiple UN resolutions and in UNRWA\u2019s mandate:<\/p>\n