Statement by H.E. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations, at Security Council meeting on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question"
Mr. President,
Thank you for convening this meeting in response to the timely request made by the delegation of Algeria. I also thank Under-Secretary General Di Carlo and Ms. Doughten of OCHA for the information provided.
Mr. President,
The attacks on the Al Tabi’een school are part of an ongoing pattern employed by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) since the beginning of the war in Gaza. It is a pattern characterized by a complete disregard for the humanitarian principle of proportionality and it results over and over again in the killing of a high number of civilians on the pretext of eliminating one or more military targets. The Al Tabi’een incident joins a growing list of similar incidents, and one can expect this pattern to continue unless there are meaningful measures to stop the Israelis from continuing this senseless massacre of the Palestinian people. Guyana condemns in the strongest terms the ongoing violations of international law, including international humanitarian law that manifests in the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure. We call on Israel and all parties to the conflict to abide by their obligations under international law and to end the hostilities against the people of Palestine.
Mr. President,
Ten months of Israel’s unrelenting and unprecedented assault against the Palestinian people in Gaza have created a tragedy of such cruel proportions that it is difficult to find anything comparable in modern history. The death toll is approaching forty thousand, with women and children overrepresented in this number. People are starving and living in the most inhumane conditions imaginable, with virtually no access to medicine and healthcare. Polio has now been detected in wastewater in Gaza, placing unvaccinated children at risk. Again, it is the children of Gaza that will suffer the most if an outbreak is not prevented. What else can we expect though, when there is one toilet for 600 people living in shelters? Council members are all aware that the World Health Organization (WHO) is ready to send more than 1 million polio vaccines to Gaza, targeting 600,000 children. In the words of the Director General, “The WHO needs absolute freedom of movement for health workers and medical equipment to carry out these complex operations safely and effectively. A ceasefire, or at least “days of tranquility” during preparation and delivery of the vaccination campaigns are required to protect children in Gaza from polio.” Guyana supports the WHO’s plans to tackle this problem and appeals to the Israeli Government to provide the relevant authorizations and to ensure the conditions to facilitate the vaccination campaign. This is a humanitarian imperative and a legal and moral obligation.
Mr. President,
Guyana has watched with keen horror the Israeli strategy of making Gaza a thoroughfare of destruction. The images coming out of Gaza show a moonscape. Yet, what those images do not show is the problem of unexploded ordnances which, according to one commentator, makes Gaza a literal ticking time bomb. Even after the hostilities end, these will present a real danger that could possibly take years to address.
Mr. President,
Shall we speak also of the severe psychological trauma that this war has brought on and of which Ms. Doughten spoke? The constant bombings, multiple displacements, sight and smell of death, dismemberment, harassment, and other indignities can only be expected to have a heavy mental toll on civilians.
Shall we also speak of the harrowing accounts of Palestinian civilians detained in Israel? The torture, including sexual violence, to which they are subject is illustrative of a level of depravity and debauchery that should never find expression among the agents of a civilized nation, more so a United Nations Member State.
Mr. President,
But all of this represents the occupying power executing its colonialist aspirations, fueled by a racist and religious ideology of superiority that allows it to treat the Palestinians as inferior. It is an ideology that promotes the subjugation of the Palestinian people. This is the reason that Israel’s response to 7 October has been so “over the top.” It is to pummel the Palestinians into relinquishing any aspiration to freedom and self-determination. It is part of the wider strategy that we are also witnessing in the occupied West Bank, characterized by the ongoing illegal settlement activity and the accompanying violence under the watchful and encouraging eyes of the Israeli Security Forces.
This Council has a responsibility to end the impunity with which Israel has been carrying out its atrocities against the Palestinian people. It flies in the face of everything that the United Nations is built on – peace and security, human rights and sustainable development. We cannot allow this to continue.
Mr. President,
It has been more than two months since this Council passed resolution 2735 (2024), endorsing the efforts of US, Qatar and Egypt for which we thank them. Since then, 2,600 more Palestinians in Gaza have been killed and over 7000 more injured. Ms. Doughten asked how long? We ask how many more? We stress again the obligation of the parties to implement the provisions of resolution 2735 to reach a deal for a ceasefire, the release of hostages and for adequate humanitarian assistance to reach the people of Gaza. We also underline the obligation of Israel to abide by the ICJ orders mandating that Israel take the necessary steps to protect Palestinian lives and wellbeing and prevent genocide.
In closing, Mr. President, implementation of the two-state solution is way overdue and is the only viable path to peace. It is an injustice to the Palestinian people and to the people of the Middle East generally that peace appears to be a chimera owing to Israel’s dogged agenda to deny Palestinians their right to live in freedom and dignity in their own state. Guyana urges the Council to act to end this injustice. Guyana is prepared to do its part.
I thank you.
