UNSC convenes on Gaza crisis, calls for urgent renewal of ceasefire, hostage releases

By Anjali Sharma

UNITED NATIONS – UN Security Council President and the Danish Ambassador Christina Markus Lassen on Tuesday called for an emergency meeting on the situation in Gaza crisis in the aftermath of the Israeli airstrikes.

Danish Ambassador Christina Markus Lassen has gaveled the meeting order, and adopted the agenda and also invited the representatives of Israel and the Observer State of Palestine to participate in the meeting.

The Council met in New York on the Middle East crisis, exactly 2 months since the start of the fragile Gaza ceasefire and hostages deal came into effect.

The ceasefire has been shattered by deadly Israeli airstrikes overnight after a two-week aid blockade which has strained critical supplies.

UN agencies and the local authorities said that over 400 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more injured.

Danish Ambassador Christina Markus Lassen, in her national capacity said that a ceasefire to end the fighting and pave the way for remaining hostage releases is needed now more than ever.

She warned of the consequences of continuing the aid blockade, she said the lack of supplies has meant reduced food rations.“Civilians of Gaza have suffered enough,” she added.

She called on Israel to “abide by its obligations under international law to ensure full, rapid, safe and unhindered provision of humanitarian assistance to the population in Gaza.”

Ambassador Lassen stated that the Council has a responsibility to act, reiterated Denmark’s commitment to urgently work towards the two-State solution.UN head Antonio Guterres ‘shocked’ by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, in a statement issued by UN spokesman’s office in New York.

Mr. Guterres is “shocked” by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, which have resulted in significant civilian casualties, his spokesperson said on Tuesday.

UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq in a statement urged all parties to respect the ceasefire, restore unimpeded humanitarian assistance, and unconditionally release the remaining hostages.

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher also briefed the Security Council, with a warning that last night “our worst fears materialized”.

“Airstrikes resumed across the entire Gaza Strip [with] unconfirmed reports of hundreds of people killed,” he said.

He said “New evacuation orders issued by Israeli forces and once again, the people of Gaza living in abject fear. Modest gains made during the ceasefire are being destroyed.”

Mr. Fletcher warned of an escalating humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, as Israel has completely cut off lifesaving aid since 2 March, halting the entry of food, medicine, fuel and cooking gas for 2.1 million people.

“Our repeated requests to collect aid sitting at Karem Shalom crossing have been systematically rejected,” he said.

He added that no hostages have been released, and medical evacuations and humanitarian staff rotations have ground to a halt.

Mr. Fletcher noted progress made during the ceasefire when aid surged after more than a year of restrictions, is now being reversed.

“Essential survival resources needed are now being rationed,” he warned.

He highlighted the severe impact of the blockade. Power has been cut to southern Gaza’s desalination plant, limiting clean water access for 600,000 people. Prices of essential goods have skyrocketed, with vegetable prices in northern Gaza tripling.

WFP said that 6 bakeries subsided by the agency have shut due to shortages of cooking gas.

“The World Health Organization warns that public health risks remain very high, including for communicable diseases from overcrowding and poor sanitation,” Mr. Fletcher said.

He stressed that the total blockade of aid, basic commodities and commercial goods would have a “disastrous impact”.

Mr. Fletcher raised alarm over the worsening humanitarian situation in the West Bank, calling for urgent international attention.

“Since the start of this year, 95 Palestinians have been killed, including 17 children, and 869 injured, including 179 children” he said.

He noted that the Israeli military has renewed wide-scale operations in the northern West Bank, deploying tanks for the first time in two decades, displacing 40,000 Palestinians and destroying civilian infrastructure.

Palestinian communities in Area C continue to face pressure from settlement expansion, settler violence and home demolitions, while hundreds of Israeli settlers have launched attacks on Palestinian villages, burning homes and destroying property. Roadblocks and checkpoint closures continue to disrupt Palestinian’s access to essential services, he told the Council members.

Mr. Fletcher outlined three urgent actions: unimpeded humanitarian aid and commercial supplies to Gaza, a renewed ceasefire to halt the violence and increased funding for the humanitarian response.

“Blocking food, water, and medicine is unconscionable,” he stressed.

He recalled a message he saw scrawled on a hospital whiteboard in Gaza, written by a doctor who was later killed: “Whoever stays until the end will tell the story. We did what we could. Remember us.”

Permanent Observer of the Observer State of Palestine, Riyad Mansour noted that Israel is not “denying” their role in “worsening the already dire humanitarian condition in Gaza” and the deliberate blockade. 

He said that last night was “reminiscent of the criminal bombardment our people endured for over 15 months.” “Fire and fear are yet again spreading throughout the Gaza Strip.”

“We condemn these crimes in the strongest possible terms,” he said.

He underscored the Security Council’s responsibility in doing their part. “You are the Security Council. Act. You have the power to act or you become irrelevant” 

“We, Palestine, are acting responsibly and with resolve to end this conflict once and for all. We will spare no efforts and we need all the help we can get,” he said. 

“We have an alternative, we have options,” he added.

He called for the return to a ceasefire and support for the Arab plan for reconstruction. 

“This is a historical moment where everyone must choose where they stand and which vision they see prevail,” he stated. “Life must prevail, liberty must prevail, Peace must prevail.”

Israeli Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of Israel, Brett Jonathan Miller, stated that his country “stands firm” in its commitment to return the hostages and defeat Hamas and that the international community should take its pledge seriously.

“We will bring home every last hostage,” he said, adding that the group refused to release the hostages and repeatedly rejected all offers from the US and the mediating countries, “even for the period of Ramadan.”

“And thus, the return to fighting is a necessity. The Israel Defense Forces is attacking targets of the Hamas terrorist organization to achieve our objective,” he added.

Ambassador Miller stated that Hamas continues to hold 59 innocent hostages and urged those “truly concerned about humanitarian crises, there is one that should be paramount the hostages still held in Hamas’ brutal captivity.”

“Men, women, children, the elderly innocents ripped from their homes and subjected to horrors beyond comprehension. Many are already believed to be dead, while others continue to be tormented day after day…their conditions are unknown, their treatment unimaginable,” he said.

Acting Representative of the United States to the UN, Ambassador Dorothy Shea, said the blame for the resumption of hostilities “lies solely with Hamas,” as it “steadfastly refused” every proposal and deadline presented to extend the ceasefire. 

“Hamas refused this offer, preferring still to hold hostages captive and hide among the people of Gaza, using them as human shields,” she said.

She noted that the Israel Defense Forces have been striking Hamas’ positions.

Ambassador Shea added that “it is well known that Hamas continues to use civilian infrastructure as launching pads.”

“President Trump has made clear that Hamas must release the hostages immediately or pay a high price” she said.

She stated that the US supports Israel in its “next steps.”

“We must recognize Hamas’ savagery for what it is,” she stated, describing the events of 7 October 2023 as “the worst massacre” of Jews since the Holocaust, stressed the need for the immediate release of the 59 hostages still held captive.

UK Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN James Kariuki said that the meeting came at a critical moment, as Israeli airstrikes overnight claimed many civilian casualties.

“I want to be clear – a return to fighting will only result in the deaths of further Palestinian civilians, Israeli hostages and IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) soldiers. This conflict cannot be resolved through military means,” he said.

He stated that the humanitarian situation in Gaza “was already catastrophic” and that Israel’s continued blocking of aid into the enclave is “horrifying and unacceptable”.

Ambassador Kariuki said “Humanitarian aid should never be used as a political tool,” noted that the 59 hostages remaining in the Gaza Strip must be immediately released.

“We urge all parties to return to the ceasefire deal and get back to the path of peace. A negotiated two-State solution is the best way to ensure long-term security for both Israelis and Palestinians,” he added.

Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy, First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN, said that the Security Council must do “everything possible” to help resume a ceasefire.

He said “Today, the blockade has become even more inhumane.”

Ambassador condemned the measures taken by Israel and urging it to lift all restrictions.

“We should not repeat our mistakes,” he added, noting the Council should learn the “very bitter lesson” that the number of Gazans who died was due to its inaction. 

Ambassador Polyanskiy also stated that the UN Relief and Works Agency plays an “irreplaceable role”, reiterated the need to ensure the two-State solution and the release of all hostages.

He warned that without a “just” settlement, “a vicious cycle of bloodshed and violence in the Middle East will not be broken.”\

Chinese Ambassador to the UN FU Cong said that the despite strong calls from the international community and the Gazan population’s strong desire for peace, the ceasefire has failed to enter its second phase.

“China regrets the harm done to the hard-won ceasefire,” he said.

He added that it is “gravely concerned” about Israel’s new wave of attacks.

Ambassador Cong called for the abandonment of the “logic” of supremacy of force.

“Military means are not the way to solve the Palestine-Israeli question,” he said.

He added that the “stark contrast” between 15 months of bloody conflict and 42 days of ceasefire clearly shows that indiscriminate use of force is not the right way to bring back hostages.

“China urges Israel to renounce its obsession with the use of force, immediately cease military operations in Gaza, and stop the collective punishment of Gazan civilians,” he said.

He reiterated the need for an urgent return to the ceasefire.

Algerian envoy to the UN Amar Bendjama noted that Mr. Fletcher’s briefing was both “sobering and alarming”, as world witnesses “another chapter of collective punishment being inflicted on the people of Gaza”. 

“This is not a routine briefing” he said, characterizing the two weeks blockade as “without a doubt, a war crime” and “a calculated effort to break the resilience of the Palestinian people” during the holy month of Ramadan. 

 “We are witnessing the systematic degradation of human dignity, the deliberate stripping away of the right to life…the demise of the values and principles that should be the foundation of international order,” he stated.

He said that the relevance of the Security Council is “seriously questioned” as it remains “silent faced to these atrocities”.

“Will it ever dare to take responsibility, will it ever act to stop this genocide and preserve what remains – if any – of its credibility?” he asked.

The incoming Ambassador and Permanent Representative of France to the UN Jérôme Bonnafont, expressed his country’s condemnation of Israeli strikes yesterday in the Gaza Strip that reportedly killed hundreds of people.

He said “We call for an immediate end to hostilities, which compromise the efforts to release the hostages and threatens the lives of civilian population in Gaza”.

Jérôme Bonnafont stated that all parties must respect the ceasefire and engage in good-faith negotiations to make it permanent.

“We call upon the Israeli authorities the permanent protection of all civilians and to reestablish access to water and electricity, and to immediately lift obstacles to the entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza,” he said.

He reiterated France’s call for the release of all hostages in the Gaza strip.

Pakistani Ambassador to the UN Munir Akram said that the war in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian Territory is at another “tragic milestone”.

“This war and the manner in which the Security Council and the international community respond to the atrocities and the actions that have been taken will have a lasting impact on the nature of the world order, which we and succeeding generations inherit,” he stated, noting the conflict’s death toll and impact on civilians.

“Every principle, every article of international law and international humanitarian law has been blatantly violated with impunity, defying the resolutions of the General Assembly, the Security Council and the International Court of Justice,” he added.

Mr. Akram warned that unless the international community responds with justice to what has happened and is happening in the region, “our world order is likely to regress into the barbarism from which the UN Charter was supposed to rescue us.” 

UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Muhannad Hadi condemned the latest wave of airstrikes, stating that unconfirmed reports indicate hundreds have been killed.

“This is unconscionable,” Mr. Hadi said, calling for the immediate reinstatement of a ceasefire.

He stressed that an end to hostilities, sustained humanitarian aid, the release of hostages, and the restoration of basic services are essential for Gaza’s future.UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini in a post on social media X, has described “awful scenes of civilians killed among them children” following waves of heavy Israeli bombardment.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has expressed horror at the latest Israeli airstrikes and shelling in Gaza, which, according to the territory’s Ministry of Health, have killed hundreds.

“This will add tragedy onto tragedy,” Mr. Türk said.

He stressed that the past 18 months of violence have shown there is no military solution to the crisis.

He urged Israel to halt its military operations, stating that continued force will only deepen the suffering of Palestinians already facing catastrophic conditions.

Mr. Türk called for an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and arbitrarily detained individuals, emphasising that the war must end permanently. He urged all parties with influence to push for peace and prevent further civilian suffering.

“This nightmare must end immediately.”

UNICEF said that last night’s airstrikes by Israel in Gaza, in which hundreds of people were reportedly killed, including over 130 children, represented the largest single-day child death toll in the past year.

Executive Director of the agency Catherine Russell in a statement termed the reports and images of the aftermath as “beyond horrifying”. 

“Today, Gaza’s one million children – who have endured more than 15 months of war have been plunged back into a world of fear and death,” she warned.

She stressed “attacks and the violence must stop – now.”

Ms. Russell urged all parties to immediately reinstate the ceasefire, and called on countries with influence to use their leverage to ensure the situation does not further deteriorate.

Head of the UN human rights office in the occupied Palestinian territory, Ajith Sunghay has voiced deep concern over the escalating civilian toll in Gaza following renewed Israeli airstrikes. 

He told journalists at the UN Office at Geneva from Amman that Palestinian authorities reported hundreds of deaths overnight.

Mr. Sunghay added that at least 106 Palestinians killed since the ceasefire began on 19 January.

He expressed concern over Israel’s displacement orders in the Gaza Strip, warned they mirrored previous actions that forced up to 90 per cent of the enclave’s population from their homes.