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UNITED NATIONS — A senior United Nations official has issued a stark warning over the accelerating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, describing the suffering as “unbearable” and condemning what he termed the “collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”
Khaled Khiari, UN Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, briefed the UN Security Council on Monday, reporting that more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed since mid-June — many while attempting to access aid. According to Gaza health authorities, over 56,500 Palestinians have died since the conflict escalated on October 7, 2023.
Khiari highlighted a series of attacks on civilians gathering at aid distribution sites. On June 17, an Israeli tank shell struck a crowd awaiting World Food Program (WFP) aid in Khan Younis, killing at least 50 people and injuring 200. A similar incident a week later near a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation site reportedly killed 49 and injured 197. Khiari called for independent investigations and accountability for all such incidents.
The humanitarian emergency has been worsened by a month-long total blockade imposed by Israel, cutting off access to food, water, electricity, fuel, and medicine. UN agencies warn this may constitute collective punishment and potentially starvation as a method of warfare — violations of international humanitarian law.
The WFP reports that 91% of Gaza’s population is experiencing crisis-level food insecurity. Fuel shortages are crippling life-saving operations, with UNRWA — the primary UN aid agency in Gaza — unable to access fuel since March 2. The health system is near total collapse, with nearly half of essential medicines out of stock, and hospitals overwhelmed by casualties.
More than 1.9 million people, approximately 90% of Gaza’s population, are displaced — many multiple times — with over 80% of the territory now designated as militarized or under evacuation orders.
Khiari also raised concern over escalating violence in the occupied West Bank, including lethal Israeli military raids and settler-related violence, leading to further displacement and deaths.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire, describing the crisis as having reached “horrific proportions.” Khiari concluded his remarks with a warning that “there is no military solution” to the conflict and urged renewed commitment to a political resolution based on a two-state solution.
Excerpts from Arshiya Gupta article on jurist.com | National Law U. Delhi, IN
