Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates Badr Abdelatty stressed that Israel is mainly and directly responsible for the devastation to which the Gaza Strip has been subjected and the expansion of the conflict in the Middle East, noting that it has caused a horrific humanitarian catastrophe that has claimed the lives of more than 41,000 Palestinians, most of whom are women and children, in addition to leaving over 100,000 people wounded, not to mention those who are still buried under the rubble and the others who have gone missing.

Delivering Egypt’s speech at the UN Security Council Friday 27/9/2024, Badr Abdelatty added that those surviving the Israeli onslaught will suffer for long, heavy years.

“The Israeli war machine and aggression deliberately destroyed most of the residential buildings, civilian infrastructure facilities, hospitals and schools, a thing which reflects a deliberate approach to transform the Gaza Strip into an uninhabitable area.” Israel has expelled residents of the Palestinian enclave and its aggression has also extended to the West Bank, he said.

He told the gathering that despite all international appeals to Israel to stop the bloodshed and stop the killing and targeting of civilians, and despite Egypt’s ongoing mediation efforts together with Qatar and the United States, and despite the numerous Security Council resolutions and decisions of the International Court of Justice, and the catastrophic humanitarian situation the Gaza Strip has reached, the occupation forces took revenge on the people of Gaza and used starvation and siege as a weapon against the Palestinians, forcing them to flee and be displaced from their homes. “They occupied the Palestinian side of Rafah, prevented United Nations agencies and relief organizations from distributing humanitarian aid inside the Strip, and left civilians without belongings, medicine, or sufficient food for many months, which led to a long humanitarian catastrophe.”

Badr Abdelatty pointed out that Egypt and the Arab countries have condemned the killing and targeting of civilians since the beginning of the crisis, and Egypt has also renounced violence in all its forms against all civilian populations, “but, we found Israel persisting in retaliation and expanding the scope of the conflict and turning it into a comprehensive confrontation in the region, and now it is targeting innocent civilians in Lebanon.“

Egypt, he said, would like to place before the members of the Security Council and the entire world some facts that must be taken into consideration by everyone. Israel, the occupying power, is the main party that is directly responsible for the destruction that has resulted in the Gaza Strip and is responsible for expanding the scope of the conflict, he added.

The Israeli war machine has now moved to Lebanon and in one day claimed hundreds of victims, including women and children, he said.

The foreign minister said that Israel, like other countries, has an absolute and unquestionable obligation to implement all the decisions of the UN Security Council and the International Court of Justice issued since the beginning of the crisis, as well as the rules of international humanitarian law and the laws of war. “Yet, so far none of these decisions has been enacted and Israel has been left to enjoy impunity.”Israel’s immunity from punishment has prompted the public opinion to describe what is happening as “international hypocrisy and double standards,” he added.

Minister Badr Abdelatty called on everyone to “clearly reject the lame excuses for the continuation of the war or the hollow claims repeated by the Israeli occupation authority about the measures it has taken to alleviate the humanitarian crisis, which have once and again been proven to be unreliable. The worsening famine in Gaza, as United Nations reports tell us, attests to this.”

Stopping the flow of humanitarian aid through Rafah land crossing is a direct result of the continued Israeli military control over all parts of the Gaza Strip, including the Palestinian side of the crossing, which Egypt had previously rejected and warned against, he said, adding that Egypt regards this as being an extension of the policies of collective punishment practiced against the Palestinians and an act that creates a situation on the ground that makes humanitarian work an impossible or even a suicidal mission that represents a direct threat to the lives of humanitarian workers.

Badr Abdelatty pointed out that continuing humanitarian work is still possible if Israel assumes its responsibilities and immediately withdraws from the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, hands it over to the Palestinian National Authority, and opens all other crossings surrounding Gaza from the Palestinian side.

The top Egyptian diplomat told the Security Council that what the occupied Palestine is witnessing is not the result of coincidence, and that Israel is well aware of the impact of its practices on the Gaza Strip and is also very much aware of the consequences of its settlement, demolition, land confiscation policies and daily military incursions into the cities of the West Bank. “The aim of Israel from all this is to destroy all opportunities for realizing a two-state solution,” he explained.

He promised that Egypt will continue to work tirelessly to stop the war and ensure a full, safe and sustainable access of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. It will also continue to support the Palestinian people’s steadfastness and struggle to protect their right to their land in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem, in the face of all attempts at displacement, he said. But, he added, “Our mission will not be crowned with success unless there is a clear and frank support from the international community without evasions or double standards.”

The Security Council is capable of bringing about change on the ground if the political will is present and the intentions are sincere, he said.

The foreign minister called on the Security Council to play its role and honor its responsibility to oblige Israel to agree on an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, considering this as the best radical solution to the ongoing escalation in the region. He also urged it to stop the deliberate escalation, including in Lebanon, and obligate Israel to completely withdraw from the Gaza Strip, including withdrawing forthwith from the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing and the Philadelphia crossing, so as to resume the flow of critically-needed urgent humanitarian relief aid. Moreover, he said, the Security Council should make Israel withdraw from the Palestinian side of all crossings with the Gaza Strip, in addition to guaranteeing the opening of all crossings, in preparation for a complete withdrawal from all occupied Palestinian territories.

Abdelatty called on the Security Council as well to implement all decisions of the International Court of Justice, and to oblige Israel to provide full support and empowerment to the Palestinian National Authority and to back it in carrying out all its duties towards the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, including returning to manning the crossings, providing basic services and assuming the functions of police, administration, governance and law enforcement.

The top diplomat demanded that the UN Security Council welcome the full membership of the State of Palestine in the United Nations, calling for the complete recognition of the Palestinian state established along the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. He pointed out that this matter should be regarded as important and urgent “if we are sincere in supporting the two-state solution and enforcing international justice whose credibility and the credibility of the United Nations and the Security Council are at stake."

The minister stressed the need to oblige Israel to end all forms and manifestations of its occupation of the State of Palestine, whether in the Gaza Strip or the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, according to a specific and clear timetable, saying that necessary measures in the event of inaction should be taken in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.

He said “We have been waiting for Israel to complete the final status negotiations for many decades, but to no avail. Perhaps you will agree with us that the time has come to confront the Israeli government’s rejection of the two-state solution, disrespect of international law, and defiance of United Nations resolutions, as well as its official explicit policy targeting preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

He added: "The reality is that there is no longer a partner for peace at the present time. So the time has come to immediately recognize an independent Palestinian state and end the occupation that has lasted for several decades, which the International Court of Justice described as an 'illegitimate occupation.'”

Badr Abdelatty concluded his speech before the UN Security Council by saying, “Egypt will continue to support the peace efforts that it laid its foundations and launched 45 years ago, and will try its best to ensure that the international community, including the Security Council, will not fail to carry out its responsibilities and duties to realize this peace that all peoples of the region deserve.”

MENA