~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Joint statement on the Occupied Palestinian Territories
Media
release
21
July 2025
We,
the signatories listed below, come together with a simple, urgent
message: the war in Gaza must end now.
The
suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths. The Israeli
government's aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and
deprives Gazans of human dignity. We condemn the drip feeding of aid
and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to
meet their most basic needs of water and food. It is horrifying that
over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid. The Israeli
Government's denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the
civilian population is unacceptable. Israel must comply with its
obligations under international humanitarian law.
The
hostages cruelly held captive by Hamas since 7 October 2023 continue
to suffer terribly. We condemn their continued detention and call for
their immediate and unconditional release. A negotiated ceasefire
offers the best hope of bringing them home and ending the agony of
their families.
We
call on the Israeli government to immediately lift restrictions on
the flow of aid and to urgently enable the UN and humanitarian NGOs
to do their life saving work safely and effectively.
We
call on all parties to protect civilians and uphold the obligations
of international humanitarian law. Proposals to remove the
Palestinian population into a "humanitarian city" are
completely unacceptable. Permanent forced displacement is a violation
of international humanitarian law.
We
strongly oppose any steps towards territorial or demographic change
in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The E1 settlement plan
announced by Israel's Civil Administration, if implemented, would
divide a Palestinian state in two, marking a flagrant breach of
international law and critically undermine the two-state solution.
Meanwhile, settlement building across the West Bank including East
Jerusalem has accelerated while settler violence against Palestinians
has soared. This must stop.
We
urge the parties and the international community to unite in a common
effort to bring this terrible conflict to an end, through an
immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire. Further bloodshed
serves no purpose. We reaffirm our complete support to the efforts of
the US, Qatar and Egypt to achieve this.
We
are prepared to take further action to support an immediate ceasefire
and a political pathway to security and peace for Israelis,
Palestinians and the entire region.
This
statement has been signed by:
The
Foreign Ministers of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy,
Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The
Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prime
Minister of Australia Hon Anthony Albanese
Statement on the situation in Gaza
Media
statement
Friday
25 July 2025
The
situation in Gaza has gone beyond the world’s worst fears.
The
position of the Australian Government is clear: every innocent life
matters.
Every
Israeli. Every Palestinian.
This
conflict has stolen far too many innocent lives.
Tens
of thousands of civilians are dead, children are starving.
Gaza
is in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe. Israel’s denial of
aid and the killing of civilians, including children, seeking access
to water and food cannot be defended or ignored.
We
call on Israel to comply immediately with its obligations under
international law.
This
includes allowing the United Nations and NGOs to carry out their
lifesaving work safely and without hindrance.
Any
proposals for the permanent forced displacement of the Palestinian
population must be abandoned.
Australia
condemns the terror and brutality of Hamas and we reiterate our call
for the immediate release of the remaining hostages.
We
continue to support all international efforts to facilitate a
ceasefire, recognising that an immediate and permanent ceasefire
gives the best hope of bringing hostages home and easing the agony of
their loved ones.
Australia
is proud to have strongly supported the creation of the modern state
of Israel.
Then,
as now, the global community envisioned two states: the State of
Israel and the State of Palestine.
Recognising
the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people for a state of
their own has long been a bipartisan position in Australia.
The
reason a two state solution remains the goal of the international
community is because a just and lasting peace depends upon it.
Australia
is committed to a future where both the Israeli and Palestinian
peoples can live in peace and safety, within secure and
internationally-recognised borders.
Until
that day, every effort must be made here and now to safeguard
innocent life and end the suffering and starvation of the people of
Gaza.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
24
July 2025
On
5 June 2025, Mariam, 2 years old, lies on a bed at Nasser Hospital in
Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. Mariam suffers from acute
malnutrition. She weighs just 5 kilograms, whereas the average weight
for a two-year-old should be around 11 kilograms. Her mother explains
that Mariam was in good health when she was born, but she began
losing weight a few months ago. Now, she is often too weak to eat and
is visibly exhausted. She urgently needs nutritional support and
appropriate medical treatment.
AMMAN,
24 July 2025 – “Children in the Gaza Strip are starving to death.
“Severe
malnutrition is spreading among children faster than aid can reach
them, and the world is watching it happen. Since April this year, the
reported number of children who have died from malnutrition has
jumped from 52 to 80 - a staggering 54 per cent increase in less than
three months, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. In
just 48 hours, at least four more children reportedly died of
starvation. In total, more than 100 people have died from
malnutrition during this war, and 80 per cent of them are children.
“These
deaths are unconscionable - and could have been prevented. The
UN-led humanitarian response must be allowed to function fully
through unfettered aid access to children in need.
"Without
that, we will see a further rise in acute malnutrition. In June, the
number of children admitted for treatment for malnutrition reached
the highest levels since the conflict began, with 6,500 children
admitted. July is already tracking higher, with 5,000 children
admitted in only two weeks. In Gaza City alone, out of the children
screened, the percentage of those detected with acute malnutrition
has risen four times from what it was in February.
“UNICEF
and partners remain in the Gaza Strip screening and treating children
for malnutrition, but to be able to reverse the catastrophic
situation we face, a sustained and predictable flow of humanitarian
and commercial supplies is urgently needed. Fuel must enter in
sufficient quantities that allow life-saving services to function.
Children must be protected - not killed, and not left to starve.
“We
need a ceasefire and the release of the hostages. And we need it
now.”
UNRWA
Commissioner-General on Gaza: A constructed and deliberate mass
starvation
25
July 2025
From
Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA Commissioner-General as posted on his official X account (previously known as Twitter)
#Gaza
: A constructed
and deliberate mass starvation. Today, more children died, their
bodies emaciated by hunger.
The
flawed distribution system (GHF) is not designed to address the
humanitarian crisis.
It’s
serving military and political objectives. It’s cruel as it takes
more lives than it saves lives.
Israel
controls all aspects of humanitarian access, whether outside or
within #Gaza.
Airdrops
are the most expensive and inefficient way to deliver aid. It is a
distraction to the inaction.
When
bureaucratic and political hurdles are lifted, the humanitarian
community has demonstrated it can deliver assistance at scale, in a
dignified way, without diversion.
During
the ceasefire fire in earlier this year, we succeeded to reverse the
deepening hunger.
Today,
@UNRWA
alone has the equivalent of 6,000 trucks of food and medical
assistance stuck in Egypt and Jordan.
The
unfolding famine can only be reversed by a political will.
Make
"never again" a reality.
If
we fail the Palestinians in Gaza, others are likely to be failed too
in the future.
Let's
not set a dangerous and irreversible precedent.
Background
Information:
UNRWA
is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
in the Near East. The United Nations General Assembly established
UNRWA in 1949 with a mandate to provide humanitarian assistance and
protection to registered Palestine refugees in the Agency’s area of
operations pending a just and lasting solution to their plight.
UNRWA
operates in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, The Gaza Strip,
Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
Tens
of thousands of Palestine refugees who lost their homes and
livelihoods due to the 1948 conflict continue to be displaced and in
need of support, nearly 75 years on.
UNRWA
helps Palestine Refugees achieve their full potential in human
development through quality services it provides in education, health
care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and
improvement, microfinance, and emergency assistance. UNRWA is funded
almost entirely by voluntary contributions.
Your
support is crucial to help us provide emergency aid to displaced
families in Gaza
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End
unfolding genocide or watch it end life in Gaza: UN experts say
States face defining choice
7
May 2025
GENEVA
– Escalating atrocities in Gaza present an urgent moral crossroads
and States must act now to end the violence or bear witness to the
annihilation of the Palestinian population in Gaza – an outcome
with irreversible consequences for our shared humanity and
multilateral order, UN experts warned today, demanding immediate
international intervention.
“While
States debate terminology - is it or is it not genocide? - Israel
continues its relentless destruction of life in Gaza, through attacks
by land, air and sea, displacing and massacring the surviving
population with impunity,” the experts said.
“No
one is spared - not the children, persons with disabilities, nursing
mothers, journalists, health professionals, aid workers, or hostages.
Since breaking the ceasefire, Israel has killed hundreds of
Palestinians, many daily - peaking on 18 March 2025 with 600
casualties in 24 hours, 400 of whom were children.”
“This
is one of the most ostentatious and merciless manifestations of the
desecration of human life and dignity,” the experts said.
The
aggression has transformed Gaza into a landscape of desolation, where
nearly half of the casualties are children and thousands remain
displaced. The group of experts cited over 52,535 deaths, of which 70
percent continue to be women and children, and 118,491 injuries as of
4 May 2025.
Since
March 2025, coinciding with the end of the ceasefire, Israel has
reinstated an even harsher blockade on Gaza, effectively trapping its
population in misery, hunger, and disease. “Under constant
bombardment, amid homes reduced to rubble, streets turned into zones
of terror and a devastated environment, 2.1 million survivors are
facing the direst humanitarian crisis,” the experts said. “Food
and water have been cut off for months, inducing starvation,
dehydration, and disease, which will result in more deaths becoming
the daily reality for many, especially the most vulnerable.”
Amid
this carnage, Israeli statements that fluctuate between outright
blocking of aid and conditional releases incumbent on other strategic
goals, showcase a clear intent to wield starvation as a weapon of
war, and uncertainty in the population for a basic need, increasing
the risk for trauma and mental health injuries, they warned.
“Not
only is delivering humanitarian aid one of Israel’s most critical
obligations as the occupying power, but its deliberate depletion of
essential necessities, destroying of natural resources and calculated
push to drive Gaza to the brink of collapse further corroborates its
criminal responsibility,” the experts said.
“These
acts, beyond constituting grave international crimes, follow
alarming, documented patterns of genocidal conduct.”
The
experts called on states to transcend rhetoric and take enforceable
action to immediately end the carnage and ensure accountability for
perpetrators.
“The
world is watching. Will Member States live up to their obligations
and intervene to stop the slaughter, hunger, and disease, and other
war crimes and crimes against humanity that are perpetrated daily in
complete impunity?”
International
norms were established precisely to prevent such horrors. Yet, as
millions protest globally for justice and humanity, their cries are
muted. This situation conveys a deadly message: Palestinian lives are
dispensable, and international law, if unenforced, is meaningless,”
the experts said.
They
recalled that the Palestinian right to self-determination is
irrevocable. “States must act swiftly to end the unfolding
genocide, dismantle apartheid, and secure a future in which
Palestinians and Israelis coexist in freedom and dignity.
“Arrest
warrants from the ICC against Israeli leaders for war crimes and
crimes against humanity require immediate action and compliance. The
ICJ Advisory Opinion mandates an end to the prolonged occupation, and
the deadline the General Assembly has set is 17 September 2025,”
the experts said.
Continuing
to support Israel materially or politically, especially via arms
transfers, and the provision of private military and security
services risks complicity in genocide and other serious international
crimes, they warned.
“The
decision is stark: remain passive and witness the slaughter of
innocents or take part in crafting a just resolution. The global
conscience has awakened, if asserted - despite the moral abyss we are
descending into - justice will ultimately prevail,” they said.
*The
experts: Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of
human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967;
George Katrougalos, Independent Expert on the promotion of a
democratic and equitable international order; Gehad Madi, Special
Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants; Gina Romero, Special
Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of
Association; Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of
everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of
physical and mental health; Astrid Puentes Riaño, Special Rapporteur
on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment ;
Paula Gaviria Betancur, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of
internally displaced persons; Tomoya Obokata, Special Rapporteur on
contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
Nicolas Levrat, Special Rapporteur on minority issues; Farida
Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the right to education; Ashwini K.P.
Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; Heba Hagrass,
Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities; Pedro
Arrojo-Agudo, Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking
water and sanitation; Graeme Reid, Independent Expert on protection
against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and
gender identity; Balakrishnan Rajagopal, Special Rapporteur on the
right to adequate housing; Michael Fakhri, Special Rapporteur on the
Right to Food; Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of
human rights defenders: Olivier De Schutter, Special Rapporteur on
extreme poverty and human rights; Morris Tidball-Binz, Special
Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Siobhán
Mullally, Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially
women and children; Jovana Jezdimirovic Ranito (Chair-Rapporteur),
Ravindran Daniel, Michelle Small, Joana de Deus Pereira, Andrés
Macías Tolosa, Working Group on the use of mercenaries; and
Geneviève Savigny (Chair-Rapporteur), Carlos Duarte, Uche Ewelukwa,
Shalmali Guttal, Davit Hakobyan, Working Group on the rights of
peasants and other people working in rural areas and Bina D’Costa
(Chair), Barbara G. Reynolds, Isabelle Mamadou, Working Group of
Experts on People of African Descent, Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair),
Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krstić,
and Haina Lu, Working group on discrimination against women and
girls.
Special
Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human
rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of
the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a
voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary
for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the
secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their
individual capacity and are independent from any government or
organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions
presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily
represent those of the UN or OHCHR.
Country-specific
observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms,
including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal
Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index
https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/
For
more information please contact: hrc-sr-opt@un.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
