Statement delivered by Her Excellency Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations, at the United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question

Madame President,

Thank you for organizing today’s briefing. I also thank Deputy Special Coordinator Hadi for his sobering briefing.

In the last week, this Council has met on three occasions to consider the situation in Gaza but there appears to be no points of hope that the sun is setting on this war.

Instead, to date, the sun has set on the lives of more than 44,000 persons in Gaza and may set on the lives of hundreds of thousands more who are confronted with mounting starvation, injury and disease if action is not taken to end the suffering. Regrettably, the resolution of the elected ten members of this Council that sought to take such action was vetoed last week.

Guyana reiterates its call for an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire as the first and most fundamental step to changing the situation on the ground for the numerous civilians in Gaza who have been experiencing unprecedented levels of violence and deprivation.

Madame President,

Guyana is deeply concerned that civilians in north Gaza continue to be besieged and are consequently facing diminishing conditions for survival. Bakeries and kitchens have shut down, nutrition support has been suspended, and the refueling of water and sanitation facilities remains restricted. In this context, we have noted that all attempts by the United Nations to support people in north Gaza have been denied or impeded. For example, between 1 and 18 November, 27 out of 31 coordination requests by the UN to access the besieged areas were denied and the remaining four were initially approved but then impeded on the ground. Madame President, these developments come on the heels of the recent report by the IPC’s Famine Review Committee that famine is likely occurring in north Gaza or imminent. Our responsibility as a Council is mounting in the face of this tragedy. We must act to bring the suffering to an immediate and permanent end.

Madame President,

The situation in the Gaza Strip as a whole is equally concerning. Humanitarian operations across Gaza continue to be severely affected by access restrictions and there is little or no cooperation from the Israeli side with the UN and humanitarian partners trying to address the unprecedented suffering. This is consistent with the pattern we have seen since the start of this war to inflict pain on the Palestinian people and deny them the means of easing that pain. This is the reason we continue to witness systematic attacks on healthcare infrastructure and continued disregard for deconfliction and coordination mechanisms. Guyana calls on Israel and all parties to comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, and to prioritize the well-being and protection of civilians.

Madame President,

The situation of Palestinians in the West Bank including East Jerusalem also continues to deteriorate. The worrying statistics include the killing by the Israeli forces of an average of three Palestinian children per week in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem since 7 October 2023 – a four hundred percent increase in such killings compared to the first nine months of 2023; the displacement of hundreds of Palestinians in the West Bank due to settler violence, intimidation and harassment; and school dropouts attributable to rising access restrictions. Shocking levels of barbarism characterize these illegalities, and even children are not spared such acts.

Madame President,

We have heard repeated arguments about Israel’s right to defend itself in response to Hamas’ attack of 7 October. Attacks which Guyana has repeatedly condemned. But let’s be clear, while fully respecting every State’s right to defend itself under Article 51 of the UN Charter, the Charter is also clear on how that right is to be exercised. It is neither absolute nor limitless. It is governed by clear rules under international law, and it is Israel’s complete disregard for international law that makes what is taking place in Gaza so fundamentally wrong. In what scenario does a state’s defence depend on the brutal killing of over 13,000 children? No UN Member State can invoke Article 51 of the Charter to defend killing, maiming and starving innocent women and children.

In the context of this appalling situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, Guyana underlines the following four key messages.

First, the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories has brought nothing but decades of pain and destruction to the Palestinian people, though it continues to be couched as a necessity for Israel’s security. On the contrary, the occupation has led to insecurity and instability for both Palestinians and Israelis and the Middle East as a whole. Guyana therefore recalls the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the illegality of the continued Israeli presence in the occupied Palestinian territories and emphasizes Israel’s obligation to bring that occupation to a swift end.

Second, the Security Council has a Charter responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and a mandate to address threats to the peace, breaches of the peace and acts of aggression. Guyana therefore calls on all members of the Council to consider how this mandate ought to be applied in the current conflict, bearing in mind the heavy toll that the war continues to have on civilians.

Third, the need for accountability cannot be overemphasized. The international rule of law must be consistently applied across contexts and cannot only be strenuously defended when a particular set of people are the victims. The law must be blind to all distinctions.

Fourth, the two-state solution is still the only just path to ending the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, but the prospects for achieving it are dwindling with every day that the atrocities against the Palestinian people continue with impunity. It is our collective responsibility to chart a path towards implementation of the two-state solution as the only way for the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination.

Guyana is committed to working with this Council to address all of these concerns in line with the scope provided by the Charter.

I thank you.