The UN and the crisis in the Middle East: What you need to know (Jan-Jun 2024)

13 June

The power of the image: Preserving UNRWA’s past and present for the future: as the war in Gaza rages, causing unprecedented death and destruction, telling its story is a moral imperative. Preserving images from Gaza matters more than ever. Not just to document the spiraling humanitarian tragedy right now but also to preserve it for posterity. (UNRWA)

12 June

Palestinian armed groups and Israeli authorities have both committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during the attack on 7 October and the subsequent military operations, according to a new report by a UN independent human rights body.

This was among the conclusions listed in the report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, released on Wednesday.

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G7 leaders can and must prevent human-made famine – Statement by Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (OCHA)

…In Gaza, half of the population – more than one million people – is expected to face death and starvation by the middle of July…

Additional links:

• OHCHR statements on the grave situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel

11 June

Almost 3,000 malnourished children at risk of “dying before their families’ eyes” as Rafah offensive disconnects them from treatment (UNICEF)

His Majesty King Abdullah II on Tuesday granted the Order of Al Istiqlal of the First Degree to UNRWA, in appreciation of its efforts to provide humanitarian assistance and basic services for refugees. (UNRWA)

“Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza”

• Statement by co-chairs of ‘Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza’ [EN/AR]
• UNDP Statement at the High-Level Conference ‘Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza’ (UNDP)
• Secretary-General’s remarks to Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response For Gaza (OSSG)

10 June

The UN Security Council on Monday adopted a resolution aimed at reaching a comprehensive ceasefire deal in three phases to end the war in Gaza, with US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield telling members “today, we voted for peace.”

More news:

• Palestinian women-led organizations must be at the forefront of the humanitarian response in Gaza and the West Bank (UN Women)

29 May – 7 June

Secretary-General António Guterres ‘personally devastated’ over inability of UN to safeguard staff in Gaza, despite best efforts. In a sombre ceremony at the United Nations Headquarters, in New York, the Organization remembered and honoured the 188 personnel who lost their lives in the line of duty in 2023. (UN News)

• War propels unemployment to close to 80 per cent and shrinks GDP by 83.5 per cent in the Gaza Strip (ILO – 7 Jun)
• No shelter from war: the bombing of block 2 at the UNRWA Nuseirat school (UNRWA – 6 June)
• Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General – on continued exchanges of fire across the Blue Line (OSSG – 6 Jun)
• Hunger Hotspots Report: famine looms in Gaza while risk of starvation persists in Sudan, Haiti, Mali, and South Sudan (WFP/FAO – 5 Jun)
• Statement by Ms. Alice Wairimu Nderitu, United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, on the situation in El Fasher, North Darfur (UN – 5 June)
• Occupied Palestinian Territory: Türk condemns over 500 West Bank killings, calls for accountability (OHCHR – 4 Jun)
• UN Human Rights Office – OPT: Conflict and threats severely undermining crucial work of Palestinian NGOs (OHCHR – 31 May)
• Statement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to the United Nations Security Council (UNHCR – 30 May)
• Gaza updates: WFP calls for all access points to be opened as Rafah exodus fuels hunger (WFP – 30 May)
• UN experts outraged by Israeli strikes on civilians sheltering in Rafah camps (OHCHR – 29 May)

28 May

As fighting continues in Gaza, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday that he was “heartbroken” by images of people killed and injured in airstrikes on Sunday that hit tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in Rafah. (UN News)

• Statement on Gaza by Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (OCHA)
• Briefing Notes- Press Briefing- Office of the UN Secretary General- Juliette TOUMA, UNRWA Director of Communications/ Amman, Jordan (UNRWA)
• Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel) – Mexico files a declaration of intervention in the proceedings under Article 63 of the Statute (ICJ)

27 May

• The scenes coming out of Rafah last night are harrowing (UNRWA)
  • Reports of more casualties continue to come in following an Israeli airstrike on a heavily populated area northwest of Rafah.

24 May

ICJ: “Israel must immediately halt its military offensive in Rafah”

Additional links:

Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel) – Request for the modification of the Order of 28 March 2024 – The Court reaffirms its previous provisional measures and indicates new measures (ICJ)

Statement on Rafah by Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (UN OCHA)