FIJ
Antonio Guterres, the secretary-general of the United Nations, has invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter to press for a humanitarian ceasefire to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian war.
The secretary-general appealed to the Security Council to use all its influence to press for an end to the conflict to avoid a total collapse of the humanitarian system.
In a letter addressed to José Javier De la Gasca Lopez Domínguez, the Security Council’s president, Guterres painted a picture of the challenges humanitarian workers have been facing in providing their services, including supplies and medical aids, to the civilian population in both countries.
Guterres wrote in a post on his verified X handle that this is the first time he would be invoking his powers under article 99, which empowers him inform the Security Council any matter he considers could threaten international stability.
FULL TEXT
I am writing under Article 99 of the United Nations Charter to bring to the attention of the Security Council a matter, in which in my opinion, may aggravate existing threats to the maintenance of international peace and security.
More than eight weeks of hostilities in Gaza and Israel have created appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
More than 1,200 people were brutally killed, including 33 children, and thousands were injured in the abhorrent acts of terror by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on 7 October 2023, which I have repeatedly condemned. Some 250 people were abducted, including 34 children, more than 130 of whom are still captive. They must be immediately and unconditionally released. Accounts of sexual violence during the attacks are appalling.
Civilians throughout Gaza face grave danger. Since the start of Israel’s military operation, more than 15,000 people have reportedly been killed, over 40 per cent of whom were children. Thousands of others have been injured. More than half of all homes have been destroyed. Some 80 per cent of the population of 2.2 million has been forcibly displaced, into increasingly smaller areas.
More than 1.1 million people have sought refuge in UNRWA facilities across Gaza, creating overcrowded, undignified, and unhygienic conditions. Others have nowhere to shelter and find themselves on the street. Explosive remnants of war are rendering areas uninhabitable. There is no effective protection of civilians.
