{"id":305547,"date":"2025-02-05T13:17:26","date_gmt":"2025-02-05T18:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?post_type=document&#038;p=305547"},"modified":"2025-02-06T13:22:55","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T18:22:55","slug":"international-community-must-keep-pushing-for-permanent-ceasefire-work-towards-gazas-reconstruction-secretary-general-tells-palestinian-rights-committee","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/international-community-must-keep-pushing-for-permanent-ceasefire-work-towards-gazas-reconstruction-secretary-general-tells-palestinian-rights-committee\/","title":{"rendered":"International community must keep pushing for permanent ceasefire, work towards Gaza\u2019s reconstruction, Secretary-General tells Palestinian Rights Committee"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>05 February 2025<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Speakers Urge Member States to Fully Support UN Palestine Refugee Agency\u2019s Vital Work, Stress Rising Violence by Israeli Settlers in West Bank Must Stop<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The international community must keep pushing for a permanent ceasefire and work towards the reconstruction of Gaza, the UN Chief told the Palestinian Rights Committee today, highlighting the essential role of the Â鶹APP Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East\u00a0(UNRWA) in the process.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt its essence, the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people is about the right of Palestinians to simply live as human beings in their own land,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/un-secretary-generals-remarks-421-ceirpp-05feb25\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres<\/a> in his remarks to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People as it opened its 2025\u00a0session.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_305558\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-305558\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-305558 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-1024x683.jpg\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Riyad Mansour (in foreground with back to camera), Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the Â鶹APP, speaks during the 2025 opening session and the 420th meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. In background at dais is Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres (third from right).\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%271024%27%20height%3D%27683%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%201024%20683%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%271024%27%20height%3D%27683%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-200x133.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-800x533.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/UN71085239.jpg 1200w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-orig-sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-305558\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Riyad Mansour (in foreground with back to camera), Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the Â鶹APP, speaks during the 2025 opening session and the 420th meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. In background at dais is Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres (third from right).\u00a0 UN Photo\/Loey Felipe<\/p><\/div>\n<p>However, the realization of those rights steadily slips farther out of reach as the world witnesses \u201cchilling, systematic dehumanization and demonization of an entire people\u201d, he said. \u00a0Nearly 50,000\u00a0people \u2014 70\u00a0per\u00a0cent of them women and children \u2014 have been reported killed and most of Gaza\u2019s civilian infrastructure \u2014 hospitals, schools and water facilities \u2014 has been destroyed. \u00a0Displacement after displacement, hunger and disease left an entire generation homeless and traumatized.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe cannot go back to more death and destruction,\u201d he asserted, adding that the UN is working around the clock to reach Palestinians in need and scale up support.\u00a0 That requires rapid, safe, unimpeded, expanded and sustained humanitarian access, he said, calling on Member States to fully fund humanitarian operations and support UNRWA\u2019s vital work.<\/p>\n<p>In the search for solutions, it is crucial to stay true to the bedrock of international law and avoid any form of ethnic cleansing, he stressed, adding that a viable, sovereign Palestinian State living side by side in peace and security with Israel is \u201cthe only sustainable solution for Middle East stability\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Relatedly, he voiced grave concern over rising violence by Israeli settlers and other violations in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.\u00a0 \u201cThe violence must stop,\u201d he said, urging respect for international law, including the International Court of Justice orders.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe ceasefire was a decisive step forward in providing aid and safety,\u201d said Coly Seck (Senegal), the elected Chair of the Committee for\u00a02025.\u00a0 He called on States to \u201creinvent strategies to block the way for those enemies of peace on Palestinian ground\u201d and on the international community to defend \u201cthese people long oppressed\u201d, adding: \u00a0\u201cThis is a key year for the Palestinian cause.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"video-shortcode\"><iframe title=\"UN Secretary-General Warns Against Ethnic Cleansing in Gaza, Palestine\" width=\"1320\" height=\"743\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LQxSmkS_nlo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><strong>Permanent Observer for State of Palestine Rejects Concept of \u2018Ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and Open Hell in the West Bank\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Riyad H. Mansour, Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine, said that while \u201cwe are delighted to have a ceasefire\u201d, the agreement must become permanent and cover all parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.\u00a0 He rejected the concept of \u201ca ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and open hell in the West Bank\u201d, and underscored the need to implement all the agreement\u2019s provisions, including the reconstruction of Gaza and the safe return of the Palestinians to the areas from which they were displaced.<\/p>\n<p>Outlining his objectives for\u00a02025, he stressed that defending UNRWA \u2014 the most successful story of multilateralism since the UN\u2019s inception \u2014 is paramount.\u00a0 Furthermore, he outlined his plan to work with all Member States towards a successful international conference in June, co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France, to accomplish the objectives established by the International Court of Justice.\u00a0The body determined that prolonged occupation of the Palestinian Territory is unlawful and must be terminated as quickly as possible. \u00a0Echoing that, the General Assembly legislated that this illegal occupation must be terminated within one year.<\/p>\n<p>Underscoring the need to rebuild Gaza, he declared: \u00a0\u201cIt is part of our homeland, and we do not have a homeland other than the State of Palestine [nor] are we looking for other homelands or countries\u201d.\u00a0 Rejecting any idea of ethnic cleansing, he urged all countries to help Palestine\u2019s Government in this endeavour.\u00a0 Accordingly, he spotlighted \u201cintense meetings and communications\u201d between President Mahmoud Abbas and the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no power on Earth that can remove the Palestinian people from our ancestral homeland, including Gaza,\u201d he said, adding that the return of 400,000\u00a0Palestinians to the north is \u201cour answer for those who want us to kick us out of Gaza\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNRWA Is Stabilizing Force, Committed Partner to Peace, Agency Official Says<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Greta Gunnarsdottir, Head of the UNRWA Liaison Office in New York,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/statement-of-philippe-lazzarini-unrwa-05feb25\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> speaking on behalf of the Agency\u2019s Commissioner-General<\/a>, Philippe Lazarini, said that, although the Knesset legislation prohibiting UNRWA\u2019s operations creates challenges, the Agency\u2019s local staff continues to operate \u201cat considerable personal risk\u201d in the occupied West Bank.\u00a0 While operations in Gaza continue, it is unclear how the contact prohibition with Israeli officials will constrain the Agency\u2019s work.\u00a0 Since the ceasefire, UNRWA has distributed food to 750,000\u00a0people and conducted 17,000\u00a0medical consultations; in January, 260,000\u00a0children enrolled in its online learning programmes.<\/p>\n<p>However, she emphasized curtailing UNRWA\u2019s operations will undermine the ceasefire and sabotage Gaza\u2019s recovery and political transition. \u00a0\u201cThe Government of Israel is investing significant resources to portray the Agency as a terrorist organization,\u201d she said, adding that \u2014 as a result \u2014 donors are declining or reducing funding.\u00a0 \u201cFor 75\u00a0years, UNRWA has been a stabilizing force and a committed partner for peace in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. \u00a0It must be allowed to remain so until a political solution is at hand,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food Calls Israel\u2019s Starving of 2.3\u00a0Million Palestinians in Gaza \u2018Fastest Starvation Campaign in Modern History\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Michael Fakhri, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/right-to-food-report-17jul24\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food<\/a>, speaking via video conference, recalled that Israel announced its intent to starve the civilians in Gaza on 6\u00a0October\u00a02023 \u2014 before the Hamas attacks.\u00a0 On the reached agreement, he said: \u00a0\u201cThis is not a ceasefire, [but] a slowing down of Israel\u2019s genocide and starvation campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On 6\u00a0October\u00a02023, Gaza had been under a blockade for 23\u00a0years, with 50\u00a0per\u00a0cent of its civilians already food insecure and 80\u00a0per\u00a0cent dependent on humanitarian aid.\u00a0 \u201cHow is it even possible for Israel to starve 2.3\u00a0million Palestinians in Gaza so quickly and so completely,\u201d he asked, citing it as \u201cthe fastest starvation campaign in modern history\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>One of the reasons for UNRWA\u2019s creation in\u00a01948 was to prevent the starvation of the Palestinian people, he pointed out, stressing that \u201cthere has always been the risk of starvation\u201d. \u00a0The International Court of Justice has recognized the risk of genocide and the occurrence of starvation, as reflected in its warrants on the crime of starvation against Israel\u2019s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.<\/p>\n<p>The right of return and the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people constitute the foundation necessary for future political solutions, he continued.\u00a0 Israel has been attacking Palestinians \u201cat degrees of violence not seen before\u201d, destroying food systems and creating conditions of hunger that will last for generations. \u00a0Moreover, it has attacked the UN itself \u2014 it shot at peacekeepers in Lebanon, killed a record number of UN staff in Gaza, mostly UNRWA, and declared the Secretary-General a persona non grata.<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless, he emphasized that without the support of the United States and Germany \u2014 among others \u2014 Israel would be unable to implement its starvation campaign and commit genocide. \u00a0Washington, D.C., under the previous administration, exited international law, while \u201cthe current administration exited the UN\u201d by defunding UNRWA, threatening to defund the Â鶹APP Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization\u00a0(UNESCO) and withdrawing from the Human Rights Council.\u00a0\u201cWhat is at stake is the international legal order and the UN itself,\u201d he warned, highlighting the importance of the Hague Group, which was created to implement the decisions of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Recounting Death of Relatives in Gaza Due to Israeli Bombings, UNRWA USA Philanthropy Director Stresses \u2018We Will Continue\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy world shuttered for the first time on 24\u00a0November\u00a02023, when Israel dropped a bomb on the family home where my brother lived,\u201d said Hani Almadhoun, Senior Director of Philanthropy at UNRWA USA, also recalling the humiliation of his other brother, who was falsely accused of being a fighter.\u00a0 \u201cPalestinian men were paraded by the Israeli army in their underwear as if they were part of some grotesque spectacle,\u201d he observed.\u00a0 While his non-profit organization supports UNRWA\u2019s work, he noted that individual efforts \u2014 no matter how heartfelt \u2014 cannot replace the comprehensive support of an established institution like UNRWA.\u00a0 He further recalled that, in February\u00a02024, together with his brother Mahmoud, he co-founded the Gaza Soup Kitchen, which soon became a \u201clifeline\u201d serving hot meals to thousands of families.<\/p>\n<p>When hospitals were under siege, Mahmoud also created a medical clinic that provided baby formula and diapers and founded a small school for 560\u00a0children.\u00a0 He said that \u201cforcing the Palestinians out of Gaza is as unrealistic as draining the ocean\u201d, stating:\u00a0 \u201cWhenever the world failed the Palestinian people [\u2026] the land did not.\u201d\u00a0 His concluded by citing the words of his brother Mahmoud, who was killed by an Israeli strike in November\u00a02024:\u00a0\u201cWe will continue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Committee Members Highlight UNRWA\u2019s Indispensable Role, Reject Any Attempts to Expel Palestinians from Occupied Palestinian Territory<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In the ensuing discussions, Committee members highlighted UNRWA\u2019s indispensable role, with Cuba\u2019s delegate stressing that \u201cto prohibit the work of the Agency today means undermining the present and the future of the Palestinian people\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>While Guyana\u2019s delegate underscored that \u201cthe ceasefire must be a stepping stone towards the lasting peace\u201d, her counterpart from Venezuela warned that the latest developments in the West Bank could threaten the agreement.<\/p>\n<p>Others, including Nicaragua\u2019s representative, rejected the recent declarations that imply attempts to expel the Palestinian population from its territories.\u00a0 A displacement plan \u2014 \u201ceven opening it for discussion\u201d \u2014 is unacceptable, said T\u00fcrkiye\u2019s representative.<\/p>\n<p>Echoing that, Qatar\u2019s delegate said that, during the comprehensive reconstruction process in Gaza, the international community must ensure that Palestinians remain on their land.<\/p>\n<p>For her part, Egypt\u2019s delegate said that commemorating the Committee\u2019s fiftieth anniversary manifests \u201cthe failure of the international community to assist the Palestinian people\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2025 Work Programme Adopted, Bureau Elected \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In other business, the Committee adopted its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/committee\/programme-of-work\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">work programme for\u00a02025<\/a> and unanimously elected Coly Seck (Senegal) as Chair and Neville Melvin Gertze (Namibia), Jaime Hermida Castillo (Nicaragua), Ahmad Faisal Muhamad (Malaysia), Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir (Indonesia) and Ernesto Sober\u00f3n Guzm\u00e1n (Cuba) as Vice-Chairs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; 05 February 2025 Speakers Urge Member States to Fully Support UN Palestine Refugee Agency\u2019s Vital Work, Stress Rising Violence by Israeli Settlers in West Bank Must Stop The international community must keep pushing for a permanent ceasefire and work towards the reconstruction of Gaza, the UN Chief told the Palestinian Rights Committee today, highlighting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/international-community-must-keep-pushing-for-permanent-ceasefire-work-towards-gazas-reconstruction-secretary-general-tells-palestinian-rights-committee\/\"> [&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":299,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"country":[],"document-category":[1329],"document-source":[1753],"committee-meeting":[],"document-subject":[1769,1945,1829,2005,1741,1749,1745,6866,6891,6251],"entity":[1729],"document-language":[6542],"class_list":["post-305547","document","type-document","status-publish","hentry","document-category-press-release","document-source-ceirpp","document-subject-armed-conflict","document-subject-assistance","document-subject-casualties","document-subject-gaza-strip","document-subject-human-rights-and-international-humanitarian-law","document-subject-palestine-question","document-subject-refugees-and-displaced-persons","document-subject-settler-violence","document-subject-unrwa","document-subject-west-bank","entity-united-nations-system","document-language-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/305547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/document"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/299"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/305547\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":305560,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/305547\/revisions\/305560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=305547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"document-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-category?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"document-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-source?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"committee-meeting","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/committee-meeting?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"document-subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-subject?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"entity","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/entity?post=305547"},{"taxonomy":"document-language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-language?post=305547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}