The Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, demanded this Wednesday a ceasefire with Israel so that humanitarian aid can enter the Gaza Strip, subject to a total blockade, and thus “avoid an imminent catastrophe” for its population.
Mansour stated, in a press conference, that the situation in Gaza is “extremely horrible”, and thanked the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) for its work.
The Palestinian diplomat also stated that Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian National Authority in Ramallah are “trying to send aid, but so far they have not succeeded.”
“There must be humanitarian intervention to avoid an imminent catastrophe and a massive humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip,” Mansour warned, calling for the international community to “assume its responsibilities,” collaborate and “intervene” by sending aid to Gaza.
To achieve this, he stressed, “a ceasefire or an interruption of the bombing is necessary so that the caravans [de ajuda] can access and provide assistance to people there.”
Mansour also argued that a pause in hostilities to allow aid to reach the Palestinians would “open the stage to possibly negotiate other urgent issues.”
The Palestinian diplomat always referred to Palestinian civilians and did not refer to the bombings by Palestinian militias led by the Islamist movement Hamas against the territory of Israel, although he acknowledged that “there is also suffering on the other side.”
When asked about the more than 100 hostages that Israeli authorities estimate were transferred to Gaza by militias, Mansour said he was not registered as an ambassador.
This Palestinian official defended progress towards peace: “Which requires that Israel recognize that we exist, that we are human and have national rights and aspirations that must be fulfilled, and that there be a global consensus on the two-state solution and the end of La occupation.”
Hamas, in power in the Gaza Strip since 2007, launched a surprise attack on Israeli territory on October 7, under the name of operation “Al-Aqsa Storm”, with the launch of thousands of rockets and the incursion of rebels. armed by land. sea and air.
In response, Israel bombed several Hamas facilities in that Palestinian territory from the air, in an operation it called “Iron Swords.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that his country is “at war” with Hamas, which, he recalled, was internationally classified as a terrorist movement not only by Israel but also by the United States and the European Union (EU), among others. state.
Israel, which has imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip and has cut off the supply of water, fuel and electricity, has so far confirmed more than 1,200 deaths and 3,700 injuries since the start of the Hamas offensive, supported by Hezbollah. Lebanese and the Palestinian branch of Islamic Jihad.
On the Palestinian side, the local Ministry of Health confirmed this Wednesday that, in Gaza, Israeli retaliation attacks caused at least 1,100 deaths and 5,339 injuries.
Source: TSF
