{"id":122065,"date":"2025-08-05T22:56:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T22:56:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/122065\/"},"modified":"2025-08-05T22:56:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T22:56:09","slug":"gaza-security-council-meets-on-hostage-crisis-amid-unbearable-conditions-facing-palestinian-civilians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/122065\/","title":{"rendered":"Gaza: Security Council meets on hostage crisis amid \u2018unbearable\u2019 conditions facing Palestinian civilians"},"content":{"rendered":"

Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jen\u010da briefed a Security Council<\/a> meeting on Tuesday called by Israel to discuss the plight of hostages still being held in the war-ravaged enclave.<\/p>\n

It comes after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad released images and videos of two emaciated hostages, Evaytar David and Rom Braslavsky, sparking outrage and condemnation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018An affront to humanity itself\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe scenes of Evaytar apparently being forced to dig his own grave are appalling<\/strong>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese images, and their own accounts of their treatment, have horrified us all. They are an affront to humanity itself<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Jen\u010da acknowledged the presence of Mr. David\u2019s brother, Ilay, who participated in the meeting via videoconference, saying the UN recognises \u201cthe profound pain and hardship endured by the families and loved ones of those who remain in captivity.\u201d<\/p>\n

He recalled that this week the Jewish community commemorated Tisha B\u2019Av, a day of mourning and remembrance of tragedies endured throughout its history.<\/p>\n

\u201cI pay tribute to your courage and determination, and I share your dearest wish: for your brother, and all hostages held in Gaza, to be immediately and unconditionally released,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A war crime<\/strong><\/p>\n

Currently, 50 hostages continue to be held by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in horrific conditions and 28 are thought to be deceased, while freed hostages \u201chave relayed distressing accounts of deprivation, ill-treatment, and abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the conflict began, Hamas and other armed groups have circulated dozens of videos of hostages, including statements made under duress and while clearly suffering, including the most recent footage of the two men.<\/p>\n

\u201cInternational law is clear,\u201d said Mr. Jen\u010da.\u00a0 \u201cHostage-taking is prohibited \u2013 it is a war crime<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stressed that people deprived of their liberty must be treated humanely and with dignity and allowed to be visited by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey must never be subject to ill-treatment, abuse, or humiliation, as these would also constitute violations of relevant rules of international law,\u201d he added, before reiterating UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres<\/a>\u2019s call on Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gaza situation \u2018unbearable\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, \u201cthe situation in Gaza is horrifying \u2013 it is unbearable<\/strong>,\u201d he continued, noting that \u201cPalestinians are subjected to squalid, inhumane conditions on a daily basis.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict began, according to local health authorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince the end of May, over 1,200 Palestinians have been killed and over 8,100 injured while trying to access food supplies<\/strong>, including in the vicinity of militarized aid distribution sites,\u201d said Mr. Jen\u010da.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe deaths and injuries continue to mount, day by day, with no end in sight to the suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is happening as Israel continues to severely restrict humanitarian assistance entering Gaza, while the aid that is allowed to enter \u201cis grossly inadequate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Hunger is everywhere\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

He told the Council that \u201chunger is everywhere in Gaza, visible in the faces of children and in the desperation of parents risking their lives to access the most basic supplies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here, he echoed the Secretary-General\u2019s condemnation of the ongoing violence in Gaza, including the shooting, killing, and injuring of people trying to get food.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cInternational law is clear. Civilians must be respected, protected and never targeted or deliberately deprived of food or access to other lifesaving aid \u2013 doing so is a war crime,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael must immediately allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of sufficient amounts of humanitarian relief for civilians in need, to avert further suffering and loss of life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Potential military expansion \u2018deeply alarming\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mr. Jen\u010da also addressed latest reports regarding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s possible decision to expand military operations through the entire Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n

If true, they are \u201cdeeply alarming,\u201d he said, as \u201cthis would risk catastrophic consequences for millions of Palestinians and could further endanger the lives of the remaining hostages in Gaza<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

He again turned to international law, which is clear that Gaza is and must remain an integral part of a future Palestinian State.<\/p>\n

He cited the July 2024 Advisory Opinion by the International Court of Justice<\/a> (ICJ<\/a>) which declared that Israel is under an obligation to immediately cease all new settlement activities, evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and to bring an end to its unlawful presence there as rapidly as possible.<\/p>\n

No military solution<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mr. Jen\u010da concluded his briefing by underlining the UN\u2019s position that the only way to end the violence and humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is through a full and permanent ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and allowing aid to enter at scale and without obstruction.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Civilians also must be guaranteed safe, unhindered access to assistance.<\/p>\n

He stressed that there is no military solution to the conflict in Gaza or the broader Israel-Palestine conflict.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must establish political and security frameworks that can relieve the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, start early recovery and reconstruction, address the legitimate security concerns of Israelis and Palestinians, and secure an end to Israel\u2019s unlawful occupation and achieve a sustainable two-State solution<\/strong>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

This would mean \u201cIsrael and a fully independent, democratic, contiguous, viable and sovereign Palestinian State, of which Gaza is an integral part \u2013 living side by side in peace and security within secure and recognized borders, on the basis of the pre-1967 lines, with Jerusalem as the capital of both States.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jen\u010da briefed a Security Council meeting on Tuesday called by Israel to discuss the plight…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":122066,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[99,50],"class_list":{"0":"post-122065","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"tag-israel","9":"tag-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114978631664145215","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}