429th Meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP)

Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon.
I declare open the 429th meeting of the committee on the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
The provisional agenda for the meeting has been distributed by the Secretariat for your consideration.
The provisional agenda is now put forward for adoption.
If I hear no objections, the agenda is adopted.
Your Excellencies, I would like to provide a quick recap on the activities of the committee and the Bureau since the start of the year.
The Committee Bureau has delivered two statements at the Security Council quarterly open debate on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.
One on 28 February, delivered by the vice chair, Jamie Hermida Castillo.
Warning that lasting peace cannot be achieved while annexation, occupation, and humanitarian restrictions persist.
The second one on 28 April, delivered by Vice Chair Omar Adi, where the council was warned about the continuing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, including the Palestinian question and condemned the continuing settler violence in the occupied West Bank.
We've also issued two press releases to date, one on 17 February condemning Israeli actions, undermining Palestinian land rights in the occupied West Bank, and the other on the 4th of June, condemning the order to implement the eviction of the Palestinian community of Khan Al Amar in the so called Ian area in the occupied West Bank.
The Committee Bureau also denounced the escalating Israeli settler violence and impunity, in which this order and the settlement expansion is taking place.
A delegation from the Bureau has also held fruitful bilateral meetings with the authorities in the following countries, Havana, Cuba in February to engage on political actions in support of the rights of the Palestinian people.
And in Paris, Brussels, and Madrid in May.
The discussions in the European capitals focused on the role of the European Union and key member states in sustaining momentum generated by the 2025 International Conference on the two state solution in the New York Declaration and in ensuring that attention to the question of Palestine is not displaced by other conflicts or agenda items.
The first committee civil society consultations in 2026 was held in Brussels on May 6th to strengthen dialogue with groups working on the question of Palestine and to identify concrete ways to advance international law and the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
The meeting focused on Europe's role in promoting peace, accountability, and justice, including the responsibilities of the European Union and its member states.
The Bureau delegation also visited Asmara, Eritrea in June on the question of Palestine and ways to move forward.
The Committee Bureau looks forward to continued engagements with Eritrea.
Many of you participated in the committee events organized here at the United Nations headquarters.
On May 18th or on March 18th, the committee held a meeting on the margins of the 70th session of the Commission on the status of women.
The discussions focused on how discriminatory laws affecting Palestinian women and Israeli occupation restricted access to justice and essential services with civil society highlighting the disproportionate impact on conflict and displacement.
On the 15th of May, we had a special meeting of the committee to commemorate the 18th anniversary of the Nakba.
A total of 83 member states attended the commemoration and we heard statements from 31 member states.
Thank you all for your participation.
As part of these commemorations, the committee also co organized with the permanent observer mission of the state of Palestine, the screening of the film, all that's left of you on May 13th.
Turning to upcoming activities, I would like to inform you that on the 18th of July, the committee will hold the 2026 conference on the question of Jerusalem in Cairo, Egypt, in collaboration with the organization of the Islamic Cooperation.
The focus of the event will be Jerusalem, the frontline of displacement and annexation, and the key to just and lasting peace.
The important gathering will also bring member states religious leaders and policymakers around two main themes saving the holy city, safeguarding the historic status quo at the holy sites, and preserving Palestinian presence, rights, and sovereignty in Jerusalem in the face of displacement and illegal settlement expansion policies.
The conference will reaffirm the historic and legal status quo in Jerusalem is essential to peace, stability, and religious coexistence, while highlighting the concerns of Christian and Muslim leaders regarding restrictions on freedoms of worship, access to holy sites and threats to their integrity, It will also assess the impact of Israeli measures on Jerusalem's identity and Palestinian presence, address Israel's ongoing demolitions of Palestinian homes and settlement expansions of expansion policies, and discuss international legal responsibilities to protect religious heritage and strengthen support for diplomatic legal and advocacy initiatives to preserve the city's character as a hub for religious freedom.
All member states of the diplomatic corps present in Cairo have been invited to attend the meeting.
Our Excellencies, you can see from this long list that the Bureau continues to be very active in its advocacy for Palestinian rights.
We can encourage all members and observers to strengthen their cooperation within the committee and be even more engaged in all our activities.
Turning now to agenda item three.
I will give the floor to His Excellency, Minister Ran Mansour, permant observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations.
Your Excellency, you have the floor.
Thank you very much, my dear brother, Ambassador Panda, for giving a very extensive report about the activities and the work of the committee since the beginning of the year.
And as you see from this extensive activity, which will continue until we get to September and beyond, it is based on a plan that we've adopted when we had the retreat in December of last year as to how to keep the question of Palestine alive in the international agenda.
We are aware of all of the activities that have taken place to have a permanent cease fire in Gaza, to have humanitarian assistance to scale, to stop the forced displacement, to begin the early recovery and temporary durable temporary housing before beginning of the reconstruction of Gaza and the complete withdrawal of the Israeli occupying forces from Gaza and to open the door for a political horizon that allowed the Palestinian people to attain their inalienable rights, including their right to self determination, statehood, and all aspects of their rights.
Of course, in that regard, we were engaging with our Muslim and Arab brothers, the Committee of eight and with the guarantee of the agreement of the 20 points of President Trump and to implement Security Council Resolution 20 803.
So we were engaged in all of these things, but yet not to forget that the question of Palestine, which reached as of last September 22nd, a phenomenal point when we had the summit in the General Assembly co chaired by the president of France and the leadership of Saudi Arabia and the two state solution and the adoption of the adoption of the New York Declaration.
Which is a roadmap.
If you want to study it in details along with the annexes, you will see that every minute detail related to a just comprehensive solution that is fair to the Palestinian people and also to Israel is contained in that historic document.
So that we were working on trying to harmonize between the 20 803 resolution and the global consensus on the two state solution and the New York Declaration and also the recognition of the states because when 160 countries recognize the state of Palestine, among them, we reached the point of 30 countries in Europe, Western Europe, and Eastern Europe that recognize the state and there is only left 14 countries in Europe that have not recognized the state of Palestine.
From among those who recognize the state of Palestine is France, UK, Canada, Australia, and many others such as Portugal, Belgium, Luxembourg and to name the rest of them.
So we are reaching a moment that the global consensus is saying there is no solution except the two state solution, which requires to end this illegal occupation according to the articulation of the ICG.
Now, based on that vision, the plan that we have adopted in the committee, we need to intensify our activities as a committee because it is the only committee with a mandate from the General Assembly of its kind that is working actively through peaceful methods, through political methods, through diplomatic methods, under international law provisions and the charter of the United Nations in order to allow the Palestinian people to attain their inalienable rights, including their right to self determination, statehood, and the right of the refugees, which is the core mandate of this committee.
Then we decided that we should intensify the effort of the committee in all possible angles in order to keep the question of Palestine on top of the table.
The acting chair or the vice chair of the committee just gave you quickly a summary of some of these activities, but let me concentrate in the last month and a half in the Security Council.
I think that there was during this month and the tail end of last month, at least five, maybe six meetings related to the question of Palestine that took place in the Security Council.
The main thrust of these meetings, in addition to the implementation of phase one and to move into phase two in 20 803 as it relates to Gaza, we shifted into opposing the very bold, dangerous, irresponsible, illegal, immoral policies and practices of Israel in the West Bank and the terrorism of the settlers, the annexation, the settlement enterprise.
In this connection, The heart of that policy from the Israeli government is to make e1p a reality in which to sever from Jerusalem through Mali Ad Amin settlement, then to the Hanl Ahmar all the way to the Jordan River, to cut the occupied West Bank into two parts, North and South, divided by exclusive Jewish highway for the Jews, not allowed for the Palestinian as another expression of exercising apartheid in the occupied Palestinian territory, and that from the vision of this extreme current Israeli government, after the genocide in Gaza, is not to allow the contiguity of the land of the state of Palestine in the West Bank, and therefore their dream that there will not be a Palestinian state and the Palestinian people will not exercise self determination.
That is the plan.
In these meetings in the Security Council, There was heavy emphasis in not allowing on the eve of the election campaign in Israel, that E one plan to be implemented.
In addition to the aggressive policies against Holy Jerusalem, and trying really to make it difficult for the custodianship of Jordan into the holy site in Jerusalem possible by antagonism, by desecration, by storming Alksa Mosque and Alharamsrif in order to create a situation to try to change also the reality in occupied East Jerusalem.
So one of the meetings that we succeeded in doing in the Security Council, that there was informal consultation on E one plans.
It was a very constructive discussion, as I was told by our colleagues and friends in the Security Council, in which there was unanimity against annexation.
And by doing so, opposition to E one.
It was proposed in that meeting since we all agree the 15th, why don't we announce in any form or shape, statement to the media indicating that there is unanimity among members of the Security Council against annexation.
Of course, that was not adopted.
But we had also outside the Security Council, as we often resorted to during the first year and second year of the war of genocide against our people in Gaza, the Arab group and the Muslim group called for a press conference and many people attended, many ambassadors, including members of this committee, to indicate that if we do not agree on product inside the Security Council officially, we agree on a product supported by a large number of ambassadors and countries outside the Security Council.
And we've done this also more than one time as it relates, for example, to Onrua in which the coalition of 118 countries in defense of Orua often we agreed on a statement.
We assembled 70, 80, 100 ambassadors who are supportive of that statement to speak to the media, to read the statement that reflects the position of that collective in shielding and defending Onora.
So these are some of the examples, and we were afraid that Prime Minister Netanyahu might put in the market the bids for companies to begin the implementation of E one to connect occupied East Jerusalem with Mali Ad Amin.
And I think that Prussia contributed until this moment for not seeing action by the Israeli government, and we hope we succeed in not allowing them to take such steps.
Now, of course, we are happy that there is an agreement, the memorandum of understanding on the Gulf.
Because the 100 war in the Gulf took attention away from the question of Palestine and the effort for implementing completely phase one and moving into phase two, and we hope now that the quietness in the Gulf region would allow for intensifying the effort in the question of Palestine so that we can move in the correct direction for seeing the elements that I started with with regard to the ceasefire being permanent, humanitarian assistance to scale, no forced transfer, beginning of the reconstruction, the initial stage and the following stage, and the withdrawal of the Israeli forces and beginning to concentrate on the political horizon to be congruent with the essence of the New York Declaration.
So we are not there, but we hope that we are moving in this direction.
And I believe that the committee of eight, which issued many statements during the course of a month and a half, emphasizing the same elements that we are talking about, opposing annexation, opposing settlement enterprise, opposing settler terrorism, opposing those who want to go back to fighting in the Gaza strip because the cease fire is fragile.
And, you know, pushing in the direction of the political horizon.
So we're grateful to all of them, and we are grateful, as I said, to therefore guarantee countries, you know, Egypt, Turkey, Qatar, and the United States for trying, you know, to implement all elements of resolution 28 003.
And we work very closely with our friends and Arabs and Muslims and old friends that would be channeling their efforts in that direction.
This is the political situation that we are going through.
We're looking forward to this very important international annual conference in Jerusalem in Egypt.
It was not selected Egypt was not selected by accident.
Egypt is the biggest Arab country.
It is, you know, the adjacent to the southern part of the state of Palestine, the Gaza strip.
It is, you know, in the forefront of defending the implementation of the national rights of the Palestinian people in 20 803, and Jerusalem is extremely important not only to all the Arabs and the Muslims, but also there is a special role for our brothers in Jordan.
And therefore, to have The conference about Jerusalem now and in Egypt so close to Palestine is not that only we are consumed with Gaza and what's happening in the West Bank, but we are not forgetting about Jerusalem.
So to complete the circle of the three components of the land of the state of Palestine.
We're looking forward to it.
We are mixing spiritual leaders, Muslims and Christians in Palestine and in Egypt, along with the intellectuals, experts, leaders in the different aspects of what Jerusalem means to the Arab culture, to heritage, not only of the region, but also to the Muslim countries.
Jerusalem is something that is huge.
In our tradition, in our culture, not only for the Palestinians, but also for the 2 billion Muslims, along with the half 1 billion of the Arab nations and many other countries.
This is where we are.
Our work is not finished.
Now, we will be done the end of July.
We know that August is a month that isn't much that there are not much activities and we express our solidarity with the hot weather, with the capitals in Europe, they're jumping into the rivers and the sea to cool down.
The temperature is unprecedented 102-110 in cities like Paris, Madrid, London, and other countries in Europe.
But we are ready for the Angola.
And we are ready also to go to Spain and we are grateful to Spain to have an international seminar and media, but to be creative and maybe to and people who are legends in movies, in theaters, the cultural aspect to concentrate on journalists from Europe with the idea that they have a right to go and visit the occupied Palestinian territory, especially Gaza, to objectively report on the reality of the Palestinian people.
That would be in October.
So that we will continue the march until the conditions change, where we see an opening of a door to begin the accelerated process of the implementation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, the end of this illegal occupation, the independence of the state of Palestine on the 4th of June, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, and to create an environment in our region as stated in the New York Declaration, where there will be an environment that all states in the region of the region can live in peace and harmony with each other.
We're not there yet, but we will not lose sight of that very lofty objective, which is a key it is the essence of the mandate of the committee.
We are grateful for the committee for all this hard work they do.
We take them from spending time on issues related to their domestic nations and they devoted to Palestine.
We are grateful for them, the chairman, the vice chairs, all of you, and also for the division, which we know the financial reality of the UN So we're asking from them to work extra time because these are unusual moments that we are going through.
We need all of us to do much more than we do normally because Palestine need extra work from all of you and I know that you will not hesitate to give Palestine the extra effort in order that collectively we can finish this last question that has been on the agenda of the UN its its inception.
Is to give freedom and dignity for the Palestinian people in their own independent sovereign state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.
I'll stop here, Mr.
Chairman.
If there are any questions, I'll be more than delighted to respond to it.
Thank you.
I thank His Excellency, Minister Mansour, for his remarks.
Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, Let's now discuss agenda item four on the recommendation on a request by a member state to join the committee as an observer.
We received a not verbal from the permanent mission of Chile informing on Chile's decision to withdraw its membership from the committee on the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and requesting to be granted observer status.
The Bureau considered and endorsed this request at its meeting held on the 4th of June.
The matter is now before the committee for its consideration in accordance with the established procedures, should the committee decide to approve this request, the chair of the committee will communicate this decision to the president of the General Assembly.
Requesting that the matter be brought to the attention of the Assembly.
I will invite any comments at this stage before committee members take a decision by acclamation on Chile's request.
Are there any members who wish to take the floor and comment on this request? There are no members who wish to take the floor.
I take it that the committee has accepted the request by Chile to be accepted as an observer to the committee.
It is so decided.
This information will be communicated to the president of the General Assembly for the assembly's information.
Mr.
Chairman, may I say something? Mr.
Minister.
Thank you very much.
We respect the wish of the committee in this issue.
We welcomed the joining of Chile to be a full member of the committee.
We appreciate that, and that was an investment in peace and preserving the two state solution.
And we respect their desire, the new desire of being an observer.
And I tell them as friends, there is not much fundamental difference between a full member and an observer member.
We appreciate the fact that Chile is just only making a slight adjustment for their own reasoning.
But we are very happy that there are still an observer in this committee.
And as you see, everything is open for discussion among full members and observer, the 50 of you and you can be as active as you wish, whether you are a full member or an observer member, and you can be as not active as you wish, whether you are a full member or an observer member.
The most important thing is to remain as part of the 50 members and observer of this committee that is working for the attainment of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self determination, statehood, and the right of the refugees.
I know the policy of Chile is that and they honor and respect international law because self determination is a key enshrined principle in the charter of the UN the Palestinian people should not be denied the right of self determination, including independence and statehood and Chile is recognizing the state of Palestine.
We have a very active embassy in Chile, and we have a large community of Palestinian Chileans, and we know how active they are, how influential they are, and how closely they work for any administration that the Chilean people select through democratic elections.
I just wanted to say that so that no one can try to distort the true position of Chile, which we respect and honor.
I will stop there and then think our colleagues from Chilean delegation do understand exactly what I mean.
Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
I thank His Excellency Minister Mansour, for his intervention and clarification.
We are now going to hear from Master Michael Cont, Director of UNR Representative Office in New York, who will be briefing us on the situation faced by the agency.
Members and observers of the committee will have the opportunity to ask questions or make their comments after his briefing.
I now invite Master Conte to take up his seat at the front table.
Thank you, Mr.
Conte.
You have the floor.
Mr.
Chair, thank you very much for the invitation to address this committee.
Let me also recognize Minister Mansour, and thank you, Minister, for the emphasis you placed on the efforts to defend and promote Honor in your speech.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to address the committee for the second time since my previous briefing.
URA has been undergoing a leadership transition.
The Secretary-General designated Mr.
Christian Saunders to lead the agency and interim.
It's fair to say that Commissioner General Saunders hit the ground running.
He started his assignment by field visits in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria.
Last week, he briefed the Advisory Commission of URA, which is the agency body that brings together countries advising and assisting with our governance.
I will provide some details on the vision that Mr.
Saunders is bringing, but before maybe allow me to start with an overview of the situation of the agency.
From a financial point of view, the scale of what we're facing right now is quite unprecedented.
Continuation of funding restrictions, reductions in foreign aid budget in general, and particularly when it comes to UNRA.
As this committee knows, the agency is a very effective organization.
Yet against this background, we've had to implement austerity measures and cost control measures.
Of a fairly extraordinary scale and despite that, ORA continues to face a projected cash flow deficit of approximately $100 million for 2026.
The Commissioner General stressed to UNRWA Advisory Commission last week that the austerity measures that have been put in place cannot be sustained indefinitely, and there continues to be a disconnect between the overwhelming political support that the agency receives, as we witnessed during the renewal of the mandate at the end of last year and the financial means that the agency needs and should receive to implement the mandate from the General Assembly.
Ladies and gentlemen, this brings me to the fact that UNRWA will be hosting its annual pledging conference.
It's coming up next week on Tuesday and I am grateful for the opportunity to flag to this committee.
We very much hope that this will be a moment not only for the expression of renewed political support that is important, but also for fresh financial contributions to be announced because these two things go hand in hand.
I would like to encourage all member states to participate and where possible to translate the political support for Palestine refugees into additional financial support for the agency.
Next Tuesday, this pledging conference will be held under the auspices of the president of the General Assembly and the Secretary-General, and it will be an opportunity for Commissioner General Saunders to lay out elements of his vision.
Maybe I can give you a few elements of when Mr.
Saunders looks forward into the horizon, what the main elements that he would like to present.
It is clear that UNRWA must adapt to the reality that I described earlier.
But an adaptation that shouldn't be a weakening of the agency or the implementation of its mandate.
To succeed in doing that, UNRWA needs to align expenditures with realistic income, rationalize our budget over the next five to ten years.
Think how services can be better delivered, sometimes including closer cooperation with host countries and we are very grateful to host countries for their support.
All of these should happen without reopening of the mandate, which was just renewed.
We want to preserve an element of stability, including political stability and crucially ensure the continuity of essential services.
In this regard, Mr.
Saunders, the Commissioner General, will be presenting a five to ten year plan within six months, and I would expect that the pledging conference next week will be an opportunity for him to give a bit more details in this regard.
And as he does so, I know that he will maintain the focus which is so important for him on the protection aspect of our work, also how we can try to significantly reinforce our work on livelihoods, job creation, economic opportunities because we need to move from status quo, which has delivered limited changes over the decade.
Unwa remains a key operator in Gaza, for example, Its operational capacity needs to be maintained.
We have a capacity at Unra which is unparalleled and the staff which constitutes a key asset for future Palestinian civil service.
Mr.
Chair, since I mentioned Gaza, allow me to turn to the five field of operations where the demands placed on the agency remain very high and the needs continue to increase.
I mentioned Gaza.
As you know, the humanitarian situation has continued to deteriorate despite the announcement of a cease fire.
Military strikes have continued and they pose significant risks to the civilian and operation human operations.
Humanitarian operations alike.
In this context, it's really important to realize that despite all of these, despite all the obstacles, UNRWA remains highly operational and very much at work.
For example, UNRWA is one of the largest providers of health services in Gaza.
We have over every day, 12-14 thousand medical consultations are being provided by agency medical staff.
We are also one of the largest providers of emergency learning and psychological support services for children across the Gaza strip.
UNRWA is also the main provider of sanitation services, water distribution in the Gaza strip.
In short, despite everything, we remain a main provider of public services for the beneficiaries of our operations for Palestine refugees.
How do we do this? We do it thanks to the commitment and the hard work of more than 11,000 UNRWA personnel, themselves, refugees, most of them teachers, most of them doctors and nurses who are fully at work in Gaza and they continue working despite the circumstances in which they work.
For example, many of you remember that a few weeks ago we commemorated fallen UN staff.
Since October of 2023, 392 URA colleagues have been killed in Gaza.
This is the largest number of personnel in the agency's history and it's important to recall the circumstances in which they're serving.
I will turn briefly to the occupied Wes Bank, including E Jerusalem, where the situation is becoming graver by the day.
We have witnessed in the north of the occupied West Bank, a large scale displacement of 33,000 residents from Turkrem norms, genuine refugee camps.
Military orders have extended this displacement until the end of July.
And in the face of this situation, UNRWA remains the largest responder to this displacement crisis.
We provide, for example, healthcare to 92% of those displaced with providing education to 4,200 displaced children in our schools and temporary learning spaces.
More generally, the West Bank sees, as was noted earlier in this session, intensifying military operations, rampant violence including by settlers, enormous pressure exerted on the Palestinian authority.
In this context, URA's work on health, education, social support, protection services remains critical to provide stability to the lives of nearly 1 million Palestine refugees.
In Lebanon, I As you know, since the escalation of hostilities in March of this year, UNRWA has activated an emergency response.
We operate two collective emergency shelters in Siblin and one in Hanbed in the North.
We also continue to provide basic lifesaving services in the three camps of the tier area and despite the challenging context which has continued All 60 ARA schools remain operational with over 37,000 students enrolled through in person and remote learning modalities.
In Syria, there are approximately 418,000 Palestine refugees in the countries, nearly one third of them remain internally displaced and 92% of those were assessed as food insecure only last year, so In this context, the agency continues to be a critical stabilizing presence for Palestine refugees across Syria and we see some encouraging signs of early recovery effort, for example, in Yarmouk camp, which once was the host to the largest Palestine refugee community in Syria.
We're seeing return of families.
AnRwah Shelter rehabilitation program is assisting 1,100 families to repair damage home and rebuild their lives.
In general, for many Palestine refugees in Syria, Unwa remains not just a provider of essential services, but a source of stability, continuity, and hope.
Final word on Jordan, where a country that enjoys stability, but where Palestine refugees, including some of them displaced from Syria, continue to rely heavily on URA's education, health, and social protection services.
Mr.
Chair, in closing, allow me to thank you and the committee for your continued support for URA.
It is investing in U RA's an investment in human dignity, regional stability and hope for millions of Palestine refugees.
And Excellencies, I think it's important to keep very high on our mind that the agency remains very operational despite all the circumstances, including in the occupied Palestian territory and remains essential to delivering services to Palestine refugees at times when the needs have never been higher and in light with our mandate.
Finally, I'm grateful for this opportunity to call on all members of this committee and through them all members of the General Assembly to step up support with new and additional contributions in the context of next week's pledging conference.
This conference will be another opportunity for member states to take action to protect the rights of Palestine refugees, the mandate of ANRA and to do everything we can to support regional peace and stability.
I thank you, Mr.
Pro Chair.
Thank you, Mr.
Conte, for your very important briefing on the challenges faced by UNRraA and the committee remains concerned at the dwindling of funds made available to Unra to carry out its activities, particularly the provision of health services.
I shall now give the floor to our distinguished delegates for comments, questions to our guest.
I recognize the distinguished delegate representative of Cuba.
You have the floor.
Garcia.
Thank you, Chair, my dear friend.
Chair, we're very grateful for the update provided by Ambassador Mansoor on the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, as well as the information on the work of Arwa shared by Mr.
Michael Conte, director of Unrwa in New York.
Despite the enormous challenges currently that it's facing, IRA continues to provide humanitarian assistance and plays an essential role in providing refuge, access to drinking water, and helping in wastewater management.
This work is as essential as it was in 1949 when it was established by a mandate of the General Assembly.
We reject the activities of Israel, banning Unwa on its territory and contact with its authorities.
It's preventing delivery of humanitarian access and basic services to Gaza and violates the UN charter.
Israel, the occupying power, must immediately enable access for sufficient humanitarian access without conditions or limits to specialized agencies of the UN and must authorize the vital work of Unwa which is so indispensable at this time.
The attack on Awa is a way of attacking Palestinian refugees and those internally displaced in Gaza, preventing them accessing assistance and refuge in the middle of a genocide.
This attack, moreover, is an integral part of Israel's attack against UN, the UN and international law.
For the millions of Palestinian refugees registered in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and including in East Jerusalem, as well as in the Gaza strip, the disastrous situation on the ground and the lack of necessary funds to fund Unwa points towards an uncertain and worrying future.
We would highlight once again the work carried out on the ground by the agency with due recognition for its staff and we extend our thanks to our, Thanks to those that have worked for UNRWA and that have faced indiscriminate attacks against their installations and the civilian population, and we pay tribute to those that have lost their lives in this process.
All efforts need to be deployed so that the relevant work of UNRWA can continue and we call upon member states of the United Nations to show political willingness in order to ensure sufficient funding that is predictable and sustainable for the agency so that it can continue to fulfill the main mandate that we have given to it.
Um, chair, the Palestinian people have been denied their fundamental rights for many years, including their right to life, health, education, food, and they have been submitted to a brutal policy of aggression and extermination and their inalienable rights to self determination and to have an independent state that is sovereign on the basis of the two state solution within the pre 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital have been denied to them as well as the return of refugees.
In this alarming situation, we're continuing to see Israel applying a collective punishment policy that is preventing Urwa's essential work and preventing Unwa access.
Um, affecting all aspects of the lives of Palestinians.
We will not allow this barbarous silence to continue.
Israel must be held accountable.
It won't be possible to bring about a lasting peace and a just peace in the Middle East unless the Palestinian question is solved once and for all.
It's essential that the international community act with a sense of urgency, firmness, and determination.
Thank you.
I thank the distinguished representative of Cuba.
I see no other requests for the floor.
Cote, sorry.
Apologies.
I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Liberia.
You have the floor, sir.
Thank you, Mr.
Chair.
Thank you for also organizing this section, which we take a high level of responsibility.
The question of the Palestinian people is so important for us as members of the Security Council and also within the wider United Nations system.
The frequency with which the matter returns to the Council reminds us that humanitarian management cannot substitute for political resolution.
And that the credibility of multilateral system and action rests on our willingness to uphold international law with consistency and fairness.
The position of our delegation is principled and consistent since 2011.
When a membership of Palestine were placed on the United Nations, Liberia has approached this matter from a balanced premise that inalnable rights, dignity and stakehold, aspiration of Palestinian people and the right of the state of Israel to live in peace and security are not opposing claims, but rather mutually reinforcing requirement for a just, lasting and comprehensive peace.
Mr.
Chairman, Excellency, this position is fully consistent with Lateral foreign policy, which is anchored in the preservation of sovereignty, the peaceful settlement of disputes, respect for international law, non interference, and multilateral cooperation in the service of peace and security.
It is also shaped by Lada own national experience, which teaches us that conflict rooted in grievances and insecurity cannot be sustainably resolved by force or denial.
They require justice, dialogue, political courage, and credible implementation plan.
Labira reaffirms that the only viable, a legitimate political horizon remains the two state solutions.
An independent, sovereign, and viable state of Palestine live in S Bad with the state of Israel, both within secure, internationally recognized borders, and peace, mutual recognition, and security in accordance with international law, a relevant United Nations resolution.
The two state solution is internationally endorsed framework through which Palestine self determination and Israel's security can be made durable, enforceable and mutually sustained.
Labre therefore reiterates It's call for renewed Syria's time bound diplomacy that is anchored in the implementation of relevant general Sundays and Security Council resolution on the Palestinian question.
Finally, Mr.
Chair, Labre commends the committee for its important work in promoting awareness, mobilizing international support, and advancing the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
Lab will continue to engage constructively on this matter.
And I thank you.
I thank the distinguished representative of Liberia.
I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Indonesia.
You have the floor.
Thank you, Mr.
Chair.
Thank you for convening this meeting and I would like also to thank Minister Mansour and also Mr.
Conte for the presentations.
I have several questions related to Unra.
We take note with concerns, of course, for the funding gap needed by the Unra on the response to humanitarian situations in the OPT.
At the same times, we welcome the pledging conference that will be held in the near future.
We also have a We have a problem with the blockage of AIDs, the assistance to reach the OPT because of the weaponizations of the bureaucracy, including the difficulties of the health tools and also the lifesaving instruments to reach the community.
At the same times as well, the health care facilities are on heavy pressure.
So I would like to invite your comments with the pledging conference.
Of course, we hope that we could reach more funds to to fund the needed gap.
But at the same time, if you could also share on how you plan or ARA have a rot map on how to ensure that the aids could reach the community, taking into account all the blockage that are implemented under the ground.
Thank you, Mr.
I thank the distinguished representative of Indonesia.
I I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Malaysia.
You have the floor.
Well, thank you, Chair.
Thank you to Ministry of Manso State of Palestine and direct contact of UNRWA for your briefings and updates.
Malaysia reaffirms our support for UNRWA and its indispensable role in providing humanitarian assistance, healthcare, and other essential services.
Well, for us, the mandate and operations of UNRWA must be protected.
This is an obligation that has been further affirmed by the ICG in its advisory opinion of 22nd October 2025.
Just a brief comment about the directors reasoning about the pledging conference next week.
We look forward to the upcoming Unwrap trade pledging conference.
Malaysia intends to demonstrate its commitment at the conference and on member states in the position to do so to also contribute.
I have one question for the director, which I'd like to hear your views on.
Beyond financial contributions, what other forms of support would be most useful to UNRWA? For example, in kind goods, technical expertise, or other forms of assistance? Grateful if we can hear your comments on that.
Thank you.
I thank the distinguished representative of Malitia Before giving the floor to Master Conte to respond, I wish to give the floor to His Excellency, Minister Mansoor to make an intervention.
Your Excellency.
Thank you very much.
I want to thank all those who took the floor to say what they said and the support that they expressed a And I am also delighted that there is the voice of the Security Council, as our colleague from Liberia shared with us is thinking.
As we speak, the Security Council is convening a meeting on the report of the Secretary-General on violence against children, and my understanding there is about 97 speakers on the speaker's list which demonstrate of how the international community is outraged about the violence against children In many areas of the world, but there was a significant portion of it about the crimes committed by Israel, the occupying power, especially in the Gaza strip.
We are grateful and we express our appreciation to the Secretary-General for listing the Israeli army and Israeli officials for allowing these crimes to take place, and it is a form of exposing them from the highest authority of the Secretariat of the UN, the Secretary-General and his representative delivered the report today at the beginning of the meeting in the Security Council, which we appreciate that.
She was exposed to a vicious, uncalled for, not proper attack from the Israeli ambassador.
We stand with her and with the Secretary-General against these things.
And we as an Arab group, we have a unified position that we conveyed to the Secretary-General this afternoon standing with him and with Vanessa, his representative on violence against children in areas of armed conflict.
Instead of the Israeli representative of reviewing their policies vis-à-vis harming Palestinian children.
They are doubling down in attacking the Secretary-General, insulting him, considering him as persona non grata, and also insulting his representative who is leading this file in the Secretariat of the United Nations.
The other issue is that I'm happy to see my friend, the representative of Ona sharing with us.
The pledging conference on the 29th is a very important meeting.
Here and we appeal to everyone to attend and those who are able to pledge for help, to Honora to do so because you heard the report that they are made until the end of the year about $100 million.
It doesn't seem like a huge amount of money, and I think that there are many generous and well to do countries among us here and outside this room in the international community.
We are grateful to those who are pledging and covering most of the budget of Onora and we welcome those who will add and step to the plate to meet this gap.
Of course, that the representative of Onora will deal with help and kind and obstacles in the path.
I remember when we had a meeting in Indonesia, I met with 100 representative from civil societies who wanted to help Gaza.
I said that one of the ways for you to do that is through Ona, other ways in the medical field, also through the red, the Palestinian red crescent.
If you want to see to make sure that these help to reach the people, contact them directly.
Because us as politicians, I'm not in the technical field of how to make sure to see that ambulances and medicine and what have you to reach Gaza.
But if you talk to the doctors and the administration of the Palestine Red Crescent or to the field officers of Onnawa, they can tell you the details of how it is done and they can give you assurances that your support would reach them.
I think that he will dwell on that issue more than me because he knows the subject better than me.
Let me also add that I said I jumped into the Cairo conference at almost the end of next month, but I skipped the meeting that is taking place on violence against children in the Security Council and it is important and the report of the SG, and then there is a significant portion of it related to what is happening with Palestinian children and the Honorable pledging Conference, and also on the 30th of this month, the last day, There will be the quarterly meeting on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2334, which is known as the resolution on settlements.
And that resolution is very important, which was adopted in 2016, in which it indicated that settlements are illegal and Israel has to stop all these settlement activities.
And it also indicated that the UN does not recognize any border other than the 4th of June of 1967, which means including East Jerusalem as an occupied territory, unless the two parties through negotiation decide otherwise.
So it's not only Israel that has the veto on the borders, we also have the veto and if we agree to make any adjustment, it has to be done mutually.
But if there is no agreement, the borders are the 4th of June of 1967, among other things, and also that there is operative paragraph five, which is very important that talks that all of you are obliged to differentiate in your relationship between Israeli proper and the occupied territory.
If there are illegal things such as settlements and products of an illegal thing, the settlements, to take that into account in the differentiation.
It did not say they did not tell you not to deal with it, but it's giving you an advance advice to differentiate.
If wines are made in the settlements and the settlements are illegal, those wines in that settlements are illegal and therefore, the advice, don't buy stolen stuff.
If you go to a supermarket when they put a sign on top of it, these are stolen stuff.
They're not telling you not to buy it, but they're telling you it is stolen, they leave it up to your conscience and to your morality whether to buy stolen stuff or not.
In this case, whatever comes from settlements is illegal and you should not entertain it, you should boycott it.
So that the discussion on the 30th of this month, as we complete this month, is very important in the Security Council and I believe it is an open debate It happens every three months and the Secretary-General submits sometimes written reports, sometimes verbal reports about the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2334.
Before we move into the conference on Jerusalem in Egypt, which I understand that almost everything is complete, in terms of the details, the participants, and we're looking forward for that conference because Jerusalem, we cannot forget about Jerusalem as we cover all other occupied parts of the state of Palestine.
I just wanted to add these things, Mr.
Chairman, because the colleagues who spoke from the Security Council and from Indonesia and Malaysia, they raised issues that I'm trying to help my friend from Honor in responding to them.
And I agree with him.
I hope we see all of you and much more in the 29th in the pledging conference of Honora.
Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
I thank His Excellency, Minister Mansour, for his intervention.
I now give the floor to Mr.
Conte to respond to the comments and on questions raised by member states.
Mr.
Conte, you have the floor.
Mr.
Chair, thank you very much.
I'd like to thank wholeheartedly, Minister Mansour for his important words.
If I may, Minister, just one point of correction on the date of the pledging conference, which will be on the 30th of June Tuesday next week.
Yeah, I think the council is on the 29th 29th Exactly.
30th of June is when we're looking forward to seeing all of you in the trusteeship council chamber and indeed many generous countries, as the minister said, we're looking forward to that.
I take this opportunity, of course, to express my gratitude to the distinguished representative of Malaysia for the generous reference to the intention of his country to demonstrate its commitment and calling on other countries to To do the same in this occasion.
The distinguished representative also asked what forms of support other than financial support could be helpful.
Of course, any form of support will be helpful.
It starts at the level of political backing for the work of the agency that was manifested last year in the renewal of the mandate in the General Assembly.
This is manifested in the statements we hear today in this committee in the Security Council as well, and I take this opportunity to recognize and thank the representative of Liberia for his words today and also the support by his delegation and his permanent representative in the Security Council.
Um, political support, of course, is where it all starts, but as I said in my presentation, it really is inseparable from the practical and financial support that we receive.
The $100 million shortfall I described, is, at the end of the day, this is the money that serves to pay the salaries of our staff of the 25,000 Palestinian colleagues on the ground in the five field of operations that do the work I described earlier.
So this is, of course, a very key element of our requirements.
Other forms of assistance are very much appreciated as well.
Maybe my office can follow up with your mission to give the contexts of our colleagues back in headquarters in the fundraising and partnership division that can help more specifically with the channeling of other forms of assistance.
But as Minister Manso said, I think your Your question also points to a very important contribution that ORA can make, which is about our ability to ensure the smooth delivery of assistance.
That also brings me to the comment made by the distinguished representative of Indonesia, about the blockage of aid and how to ensure that aid will reach the intended beneficiaries.
I mean, it is very correct and sadly so that The challenge is not only about funding assistance, it's also about ensuring that assistance can reach those who need it.
Indeed, in Gaza, we have seen many instances of humanitarian operations being severely constrained with inability to bring in sufficient supplies and that continues to affect every aspect of the response.
Here, I'm speaking not only about URA, but of course, about the whole UN community and humanitarian agencies.
As we know we have seen cases of humanitarian partners needing to prioritize scarce full allocations for only the most critical lifesaving services and these are very difficult operations to handle because even when fuel is available, for example, you have shortages of lubricants, restrictions on spare parts, all of which continue to undermine the operation of generators and other infrastructure, which is really essential.
This is a very multifaceted issue there.
Having said all of that, you will Recall how I emphasized in my presentation the role of our 11,000 Palistian staff on the ground and how much they are in our view, a key contribution, of course, to the delivery of services to beneficiaries in Gaza, but also more broadly to the implementation of Security Council Resolution 20 803 of the New York Declaration that Mr.
Manso also emphasized a number of times in his remarks, because their presence, the fact that they are so well connected with the communities enables us to do at least two things.
I mean, one in the short term is to scale up lifesaving aid and essential services, but also in the medium to long term, this contributes, like I said, to building a civil service for a future independent Palestinian state.
But on a day to day basis, these 11,000 staff they are the backbone of our distribution networks through the Gaza strip.
For example, the restrictions that you mentioned mean that since March of last year, URA has been unable to bring food into the Gaza strip and we've left it to other operators in particular the World Food program to, sort of centralize the UN response in this regard.
But on the ground, the reality is that the staff, the infrastructure that we have, the logistical capabilities mean that we are an indispensable agent and operator of distributing assistance, and we remain very central to these elements.
So I hope that that's also where the support that continues for operations and the financial support that we receive and hope to receive even more in the context of the pledging conference will contribute to make a real difference in the way aid can be channeled and distributed in Gaza.
Before closing, I also want to appreciate the remarks made by the distinguished representative of Cuba with respect to supporting the work of the agency.
Thank you very much, Mr.
Chair.
If there are no further comments or questions, I will thank once again, Mr.
Conte, Director of the URA Representative Office in New York.
The committee has been a state first advocate of URA.
The agency's essential services to Palestinian refugees remain a vital lifeline for millions across the Middle East.
You may be assured of the committee's continued and unwavering support for your activities and mandate.
Thank you.
Let us now move to Agenda Item six.
I shall now give the floor to our distinguished delegates for interventions and remarks.
Please limit your interventions to 3 minutes to allow time for everyone to have the floor.
I give the floor to the distinguished delegation of representative of Venezuela, followed by Namibia.
Chair, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, consistent with its longstanding principled position, reaffirms its firm commitment to the just Palestinian cause and expresses its deepest solidarity with the Palestinian people in their legitimate struggle for the full realization of their inalienable rights.
Venezuela remains committed to promoting international efforts aimed at implementing United Nations resolutions, calling for a sovereign state of Palestine within the pre 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital based on the two state solution and on Security Council resolutions 242 and 338, as well as the other relevant resolutions of that principal organ and of the General Assembly.
Mr.
Chairman, Venezuela recognizes the longstanding contribution of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East Unwa to the welfare, human development, and protection of Palestinian refugees.
Venezuela rejects any attempt aimed at preventing Unwa from implementing its mandate and continuing to carry out its work effectively on the ground.
It likewise rejects deliberate attacks against the personnel and facilities of this agency.
In Palestine, the charter of the United Nations, human rights, and international law in general are being violated, as has been documented by the Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories.
It is important to monitor the role of transnational corporations in the Palestinian genocide.
We cannot continue to fail in protecting the civilian population, both in the Gaza strip and in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The international community must be consistent in its functions and priorities and thereby uphold the multilateral and security system of the United Nations, acting decisively to prevent further massacres and famine against the Palestinian people.
Mr.
Chairman, an important step for the Middle East peace process would be effective support for the admission of Palestine as a full member state of the United Nations.
The right to negotiate peace on an equal footing is a step that must be taken as soon as possible in order to overcome the occupation.
There can be no lasting peace where repression and annexation persist.
Peace requires respect for human dignity and for the self determination of peoples.
As a member of this committee, Venezuela reiterates its firm commitment to working for the cause of the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
We are convinced that there will be no peace in the Middle East until such time as a definitive solution to this issue is achieved.
Thank you very much, Mr.
Chairman.
I thank the distinguished representative of Venezuela.
I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Namibia.
Thank you, Chairperson, for convening this timely meeting at a time of profound crisis in the Middle East, as the region is engulfed by escalating cycles of violence, unprecedented humanitarian suffering, especially in Palestine.
For over seven decades, the Palestinian people have endured tremendous hardship.
It seems that the world has grown accustomed to the state of affairs, but this very committee has stood firm in its support of Palestine and the cause of self determination.
We reiterate our unequivocal support for the two state solution, which is not a matter of political convenience, it is a matter of justice, legality rooted in the UN Charter.
Today, Gaza stands a stark indictment of the international community's failure.
The scale of violence and destruction, the staggering civilian casualties and the obstruction of humanitarian assistance constitute a humanitarian catastrophe that should shock the conscience of humanity.
Namibia therefore demands a genuine and sustained cease fire as Israeli deadly strikes in Gaza continue unabated.
We demand the full implementation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions and unhindered humanitarian access.
The Palestinian people are entitled to dignity, security, and self determination, not as a concession, but as an inalable right.
Now, maybe I congratulates this bureau or the Bureau of this committee and the Secretariat for all the work undertaken since the beginning of the year and wishes them strength and courage for the months ahead.
I thank you.
I thank the distinguished representative of Namibia.
I see no other request for the floor, and we are reaching our last agenda item for today.
Are there any other matters to be raised? There are no other matters to be discussed, and I thank all the participants in this meeting, the meeting stands adjourned.