The Middle East, including the Palestinian Question: Briefing on the Humanitarian Situation in Gaza*
Tomorrow morning (26 July), the Security Council will hold a briefing on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question”. Algeria, China, and Russia called for the meeting to discuss the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The expected briefers are Antonia Marie De Meo, Deputy Commissioner-General (Operational Support) of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)*, and Muhannad Hadi, Deputy Special Coordinator and Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator at the Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO).
Hadi is expected to provide an update on the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Among other issues, he might focus on the factors that are impeding the provision of aid at scale to Palestinians in need. A 24 July OCHA humanitarian response update says that several issues—such as insecurity, repeated displacement, the disruption of aid flows, the breakdown of law and order, and the denial of entry of critical items—have hindered the humanitarian response by the UN and its partners, including by hampering the movement of aid inside Gaza and hindering early detection of children and women requiring nutrition services. The update notes that denied items include mine action supplies, dignity and menstrual hygiene management kits, and assistive devices for persons with disabilities, and says that restrictions by the Israeli authorities on “the transport of shelter materials between northern and southern Gaza” have resulted in partners being unable to “cover needs as they arise”.
De Meo may provide an update on the difficult circumstances faced by UNRWA and other humanitarian agencies operating in Gaza. She is likely to refer to recent incidents of humanitarian aid workers coming under fire and call for accountability for such attacks. In a 22 July post on X (formerly Twitter), UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini reported that, on 21 July, a UN convoy heading to Gaza City had come under heavy fire from the Israeli forces with one vehicle being hit by “at least five bullets while waiting just ahead of the Israeli Forces’ checkpoint south of Wadi Gaza”. The post notes that “[l]ike all other similar UN movements, this movement was coordinated and approved by the Israeli Authorities”. In remarks to the press, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric reported that, on 23 July, two UNICEF vehicles were hit with live ammunition “while waiting at a designated holding point near the Wadi Gaza checkpoint”. He further noted that UNICEF was unable to determine which party had fired on its convoy.
More generally, De Meo might describe UNRWA’s work as a lifeline for Palestine Refugees and underscore the importance of UN member states guaranteeing the continuation of its operations in line with its mandate. She might refer to legislation recently advanced in the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) to label UNRWA a terrorist organisation as part of what he has identified on several occasions as an effort by Israeli officials to dismantle the Agency.
Tomorrow, members are expected to express deep concern at the humanitarian situation in Gaza and call for the urgent provision of humanitarian aid at scale. Members are likely to condemn attacks on humanitarian agencies and their personnel and call for impartial investigations. Several members might also underscore the need to establish functioning deconfliction mechanisms. Some participants might reference the recent detection in the Gaza Strip of six environmental samples of variant poliovirus type 2 and note that the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza provide a breeding ground for the spread of diseases, particularly in light of the almost complete destruction of the healthcare system.
Participants in tomorrow’s meeting are also likely to reiterate their longstanding calls for a ceasefire and the release of all hostages, as well as their condemnations of the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attacks. Some members might also reiterate their demand that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) be granted access to all those held captive in connection with the war.
As in past Council discussions on the war between Israel and Hamas, Council members are likely to use varying tones in their remarks tomorrow, with some members forcefully criticising Israel’s conduct, while others opt for a less direct approach. For instance, in recent meetings on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question”, members including Algeria, China, and Russia have referred to Israel’s actions in Gaza as collective punishment, while the US has called on Israel to take further steps regarding the provision of aid to Palestinians.
Participants in tomorrow’s meeting are likely to underscore the need for a political horizon and express support for a two-state solution. In this context, several Council members may refer to the Advisory Opinion delivered on 19 July by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the “Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”. The ICJ considered that various Israeli policies and practices in East Jerusalem and the West Bank “are designed to remain in place indefinitely and to create irreversible effects on the ground” and, as such, “amount to annexation of large parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory”. The Court concluded that Israel, among other things, “is under an obligation to bring to an end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible” and that the General Assembly and the Security Council “should consider the precise modalities and further action required to bring to an end as rapidly as possible the unlawful presence of the State of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”.
Tomorrow’s meeting takes place against a backdrop of decreasing Security Council focus on the war in Gaza. Council members held two formal meetings on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question” in June. Tomorrow’s meeting will mark the third official meeting held under this agenda item in July, with Council members also meeting on this topic once this month in closed consultations, an informal format. By contrast, members held a total of six formal and informal meetings in May, five in April, and seven in March. This is apparently attributable to several factors, including Council members waiting for a deal between Israel and Hamas to emerge following the adoption of resolution 2735 of 10 June, which welcomed a three-phase ceasefire proposal announced by US President Joe Biden on 31 May. Another factor appears to be the assessment by several members that Council engagement on the war has not resulted in substantive change on the ground and the perception that stronger action in the Security Council remains impossible under the current dynamics. (For more information on Council dynamics and on resolution 2735 see, respectively, the brief on “The Middle East, including the Palestinian question” in our July 2024 Monthly Forecast and our 10 June What’s in Blue story).
Other relevant developments include a reconciliation agreement signed on 23 July by several Palestinian factions—including Hamas and Fatah—in Beijing, and yesterday’s (24 July) address to the US Congress by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. These are not, however, expected to be a focus of tomorrow’s meeting.
__________________________________________________________
**Post-script (26 July, 10:15 am EST): An earlier version of this story indicated that Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), is expected to brief. The story was amended to reflect that UNRWA Deputy Commissioner-General (Operational Support) Antonia Marie De Meo eventually briefed at the meeting.