The Middle East, together with the Palestinian Question: Emergency Briefing : What’s In Blue : Security Council Report

On Sunday morning (10 August), the Security Council is anticipated to carry an emergency briefing below the agenda merchandise “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question” (MEPQ). The Council’s European members—Denmark, France, Greece, Slovenia, and the UK—requested the assembly after Israel’s safety cupboard accredited a plan late yesterday night EST (7 August) for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to take management of Gaza City. The assembly request was supported by all different Council members besides the US. The anticipated briefers are Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas Miroslav Jenča and Head of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva and Director of the Coordination Division Ramesh Rajasingham.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu introduced the plan in a statement issued yesterday, saying that the IDF “will prepare for taking control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside the combat zones”. He additional listed 5 rules that the safety cupboard had accredited for concluding the conflict in Gaza: 1) disarming Hamas; 2) the return of all hostages taken by Hamas and different militant teams throughout their 7 October 2023 assault on Israel; 3) the demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip; 4) Israeli safety management of the enclave; and 5) the institution of “an alternative civil administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority”. Netanyahu added that the cupboard had rejected an “alternative plan” as inadequate to defeat Hamas or safe the hostages’ launch, with out elaborating on the main points of that plan.

The announcement got here as negotiations on a ceasefire settlement between Israel and Hamas—mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the US—had once more reached a impasse. In latest weeks, the events had been negotiating a proposal for a 60-day truce throughout which Hamas would launch the remaining hostages in levels whereas talks proceed over the phrases of a everlasting ceasefire. The events had not been in a position to agree on the main points of this framework, nevertheless, and in line with latest media reports, Israel and the US had determined to as a substitute current Hamas with an ultimatum to launch all of the remaining hostages without delay and conform to phrases to completely finish the conflict, together with the group’s disarmament. Hamas was anticipated to reject that demand, and Israel had reportedly threatened to additional escalate its army operation in response.

The plan that was accredited by Israel’s safety cupboard mentions solely Gaza City, though Netanyahu stated in an interview yesterday that Israel intends to take management of the whole Strip earlier than handing it to “Arab forces” whereas sustaining a “security perimeter”. According to media reports, totally occupying Gaza City—the territory’s largest metropolis with roughly 900,000 residents—would give Israel management of about 85 p.c of the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Authority condemned the plan as a “full-fledged crime” amounting to genocide, systematic killing, hunger, and siege, and a “blatant violation” of worldwide regulation and UN resolutions. It warned that the plan would trigger an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe”, undermine Palestinian state establishments, and threaten regional peace. In a separate statement, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates stated that the plan dangers confining greater than two million individuals to lower than ten p.c of the Gaza Strip—steps that it described as precursors to compelled displacement. It added that the “continued failure of the UN Security Council to enforce an immediate ceasefire, secure the release of hostages and detainees, protect civilians, and stop the use of starvation as a weapon has provided cover for the occupying government to pursue its plans of genocide, forced displacement, and annexation”.

The plan has additionally drawn criticism from the international community. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that it was “wrong” and would “only bring more bloodshed”. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a suspension of army tools exports to Israel that may very well be utilized in Gaza, saying it was “increasingly unclear” how the plan would obtain the targets of ending the conflict and returning the hostages. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urged Israel to rethink, whereas UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that he was “gravely alarmed” by the choice, describing it as “a dangerous escalation” that might “deepen the already catastrophic consequences for millions of Palestinians” and “further endanger more lives, including of the remaining hostages”. By distinction, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee defended the plan as essential to defeat Hamas, comparing it to the Allied bombing of Dresden throughout World War II.

The humanitarian state of affairs in Gaza is already disastrous because of Israel’s ongoing army marketing campaign and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian assist. According to OCHA, citing figures from Gaza’s Ministry of Health, as at 31 July greater than 61,100 Palestinians had been killed and over 151,000 injured for the reason that conflict started in October 2023, together with practically 18,500 kids. Nearly 12,000 kids below 5 had been acutely malnourished in July—the very best month-to-month determine to this point—and not less than 193 individuals, together with 96 kids, have died from malnutrition. On 29 July, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned that “the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in the Gaza Strip”.

Additionally, OCHA reported that 86 p.c of Gaza’s crop fields are broken and just one.5 p.c stay each accessible and undamaged, whereas practically 78 p.c of buildings have been destroyed or broken. Hospitals are overwhelmed, with some working at greater than double capability, and an estimated 14,800 sufferers require pressing medical evacuation. UN assist supply is hampered by entry restrictions and insecurity; between 30 July and 5 August, 39 p.c of deliberate assist actions had been delayed or solely partially accomplished, and plenty of assist provides had been “offloaded by hungry crowds or looted along aid convoy routes” earlier than reaching their locations.

Sunday’s assembly will enable Council members to get an evaluation from UN briefers of the potential penalties of Israel’s deliberate take-over of Gaza City, together with its humanitarian influence. While the US is prone to describe the transfer as in line with Israel’s proper to defend itself and blame Hamas for the continued conflict, most different members are anticipated to sentence the plan as a breach of worldwide regulation, reiterating earlier requires a direct ceasefire, the unconditional launch of all hostages, and the restoration of full humanitarian entry. Some would possibly stress the hyperlink between these targets, emphasising a ceasefire as one of the simplest ways to return the hostages whereas warning of the dangers that an expanded army offensive poses to their security. Several members may underscore the necessity for a sustainable political resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian battle and warning in opposition to any unilateral strikes that might undermine the viability of the two-state resolution. In this regard, some could name for pressing motion to implement the end result doc of the high-level international conference on the matter, which was held at UN Headquarters between 28 and 30 July.

Tags: Insights on the Middle East, Middle East together with the Palestinian Question