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Scroll down for the PDF file.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n The Bulletin can be found in the United Nations Information System\u00a0<\/em>on the Question of Palestine (±¬ÁÏÍøISPAL) at <\/em>https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/data-collection\/monthly-bulletin\/<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Disclaimer: The texts cited in this Monthly Bulletin have been\u00a0reproduced in their original form<\/u>. The Division for Palestinian Rights is consequently not responsible for the views, positions or discrepancies contained in these texts.<\/em><\/p>\n July 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n Volume XLVIII, Bulletin No. VII<\/strong><\/p>\n On 1 July, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n OCHA warns that deadly hostilities continue to increase the suffering of civilians in Gaza, driving additional displacement.<\/p>\n Military operations have further intensified in northern Gaza since the issuance of the displacement order on Sunday by the Israeli authorities. In the time since that directive was announced, partners on the ground say that at least 1,500 families have been displaced from North Gaza, as well as eastern parts of Gaza governorate, towards the central and western parts of Gaza governorate.<\/p>\n Over the past 48 hours, five school buildings sheltering displaced families in North Gaza were reportedly hit, with deaths and injuries reported.<\/p>\n Initial assessments by partners indicate that many families who fled from the schools that were hit have returned to North Gaza, largely due to the lack of alternatives and limited shelter space elsewhere.<\/p>\n Healthcare also continues to come under attack. The World Health Organization (WHO)\u00a0says<\/em><\/a>\u00a0that in central Gaza yesterday, a tent sheltering displaced people in the courtyard of Al-Aqsa Hospital, in Deir al Balah, was reportedly hit, injuring five people. The agency added that the hospital\u2019s internal medicine department also sustained some damage, and its oxygen supply line was affected.<\/p>\n Since October 2023, WHO has documented 734 attacks on healthcare in Gaza. WHO reiterated its call for the protection of civilians and healthcare facilities, noting that ongoing attacks on healthcare and continued hostilities near hospitals are fuelling fear among already traumatized communities and placing further strain on facilities struggling to cope.<\/p>\n OCHA reiterates that under international humanitarian law, civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected, not targeted.<\/p>\n Regarding aid operations on the ground, OCHA warns that movement restrictions remain a major challenge, preventing partners from predictably and sustainably providing critical services and assistance.<\/p>\n Yesterday, only eight out of 15 attempts to coordinate humanitarian movements inside Gaza were facilitated by the Israeli authorities, including to remove debris. Three other missions were denied outright, while two missions were impeded and two others had to be cancelled due to security or logistical challenges.<\/p>\n As humanitarian assistance and basic services dwindle, people in Gaza are being increasingly deprived of the means for their survival. This is a red flag that demands urgent action to secure the opening of all crossings and facilitation of all humanitarian operations, including meaningful flows of necessary life-saving supplies.<\/p>\n OCHA warns that fuel supplies are fast running out \u2013 with devastating consequences for civilians. Today, the Ministry of Health reported that Al-Shifa Medical Complex has suspended its kidney dialysis services due to fuel shortages, and that intensive care services will be limited to a few hours each day.<\/p>\n Ensuring sustained access to fuel is essential to avoid a collapse of the logistics backbone underpinning the humanitarian response. No fuel has entered Gaza since the ceasefire over 17 weeks ago, and as available stocks are depleted, OCHA warns that more life-saving and life-sustaining facilities could also shut down very soon.<\/p>\n In a\u00a0social media post<\/em><\/a>, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned that the window to push back starvation in Gaza is closing fast. The agency added that its teams are adapting in real time \u2013 setting up new distribution points, navigating extreme constraints, and using every safe route to reach people where they are.<\/p>\n However, to sustain these efforts, WFP reiterated its call for multiple points of access and safe routes to reach people, support from the international community, and a sustained ceasefire.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Food and Agriculture Organization\u00a0reports<\/em><\/a>\u00a0that the agency recently supported 200 farmers in Rafah and Khan Younis to optimize the use of land that is still available to grow critically needed staple crops.<\/p>\n The pilot initiative \u2014 which is being funded through the occupied Palestinian territory Humanitarian Fund*<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 provides farmers with cash-based assistance to help re-establish limited local food production until a sustained ceasefire is reached.<\/p>\n The following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a> was issued on 3 July by the spokesperson for ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres.<\/em><\/p>\n The Secretary-General is appalled by the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza.\u00a0Multiple attacks in recent days hitting sites hosting displaced people and people trying to access food have killed and injured scores of Palestinians. The Secretary-General strongly condemns the loss of civilian life.<\/p>\n In just one day this week, orders to relocate forced nearly 30,000 people to flee, yet again, with no safe place to go and clearly inadequate supplies of shelter, food, medicine or water.<\/p>\n International humanitarian law is unambiguous: civilians must be respected and protected and the needs of the population must be met.<\/p>\n With no fuel having entered Gaza in more than 17 weeks, the Secretary-General is gravely concerned that the last lifelines for survival are being cut off. Without an urgent influx of fuel, incubators will shut down, ambulances will be unable to reach the injured and sick, and water cannot be purified. The delivery by the United Nations and partners of what little of our life-saving humanitarian aid is left in Gaza will also grind to a halt.<\/p>\n He once again calls for full, safe and sustained humanitarian access so aid can reach people who have been deprived of the basics of life for far too long. The ±¬ÁÏÍø has a clear and proven plan, rooted in the humanitarian principles, to get vital assistance to civilians \u2014 safely and at scale, wherever they are.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General reiterates that all parties must uphold their obligations under international law. He renews his call for an immediate permanent ceasefire and for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.<\/p>\n On 3 July, Francesca Albanese,\u202f±¬ÁÏÍø Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The Israel\u2019s genocide against Palestinians is being sustained by a system of exploitative occupation and profit, a ±¬ÁÏÍø expert warned today in a new\u00a0report<\/em><\/a>\u00a0to the Human Rights Council that reveals how corporate profiteering and monetary gain has enabled and legitimised Israel\u2019s illegal presence and actions.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the past 21 months, while Israel\u2019s genocide has devastated Palestinian lives and landscapes, the Tel Aviv stock exchange soared by 213 percent (USD), amassing $225.7 billion in market gains \u2014 including $67.8 billion in the past month alone. For some, genocide is profitable,\u201d said Francesca Albanese, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967.<\/p>\n Albanese\u2019s report exposes the corporate infrastructure profiting from Israel\u2019s economy of occupation \u2014 and its deadly transformation into an economy of genocide. The report underscores how Palestine has become the epicentre of a global reckoning, exposing the failure of international business and legal systems to uphold even the most basic rights of one of the world\u2019s most dispossessed peoples.<\/p>\n \u201cCorporate actors are deeply entwined in the system of occupation, apartheid and genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory,\u201d the Special Rapporteur said. \u201cFor decades, Israel\u2019s repression of Palestinian people has been scaffolded by corporations, fully aware of and yet indifferent to, decades of human rights violations and international crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n Forty-eight separate corporate actors, along with their parents, subsidiaries, franchisees, licensees and consortium partners across sectors are identified in the Special Rapporteur\u2019s report, including weapons manufacturers, technological corporations, financial institutions and construction and energy firms.<\/p>\n Albanese found that these entities have failed their most basic legal responsibilities to exercise their leverage to bring an end to the violation at stake or terminate relations and disengage. Instead, they have treated Israel\u2019s illegal enterprise in the occupied Palestinian territory as ordinary economic activity \u2014 wilfully ignoring documented, systemic abuses, even as atrocities mounted after 7 October 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cThese actors have entrenched and expanded Israel\u2019s settler-colonial logic of displacement and replacement \u2014 and this is not accidental,\u201d the Special Rapporteur said. \u201cIt is the function of an economy built to dominate, dispossess, and erase Palestinians from their land.\u201d<\/p>\n The report named companies supplying F-35s, drones, and targeting tech that enabled 85,000 tons of bombs \u2014 six times the amount of Hiroshima \u2014 to be unleashed on Gaza. It highlighted tech giants that have set up R&D hubs and data centres in Israel, using Palestinian data for AI warfare, fuelling what Albanese calls a \u2018livestreamed genocide.\u2019 The report points to energy giants having fuelled Israel\u2019s blockade, while construction companies continued to supply the equipment that has turned Gaza to rubble and prevented the return and reconstitution of Palestinian life. Even seemingly neutral actors \u2014 tourism sites, supermarkets, and universities are normalising apartheid and the systematic erasure of Palestinian life, the Special Rapporteur\u2019s report found.<\/p>\n \u201cThis report shows why Israel\u2019s genocide continues: because it is lucrative for many,\u201d Albanese said. She warned that the International Court of Justice 2024 rulings and the ICC arrest warrants should have put all actors \u2014 including corporations \u2014 on notice.<\/p>\n \u201cThe serious, structural and sustained nature of Israel\u2019s crimes and violations triggered a\u00a0prima facie<\/em>\u00a0responsibility to disengage \u2014 one that many corporations ignored,\u201d she said. \u201cCorporate fixation on narrow technicalities and isolated violations rather than confronting the structural illegality of their ties to Israel\u2019s occupation is disingenuous,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Albanese urged member states to impose a full arms embargo, suspend trade and investment agreements, and hold corporate entities accountable for violations of international law.<\/p>\n \u201cMeanwhile, corporations cannot claim neutrality: they are either part of the machinery of displacement\u2014or part of dismantling it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPalestine is a mirror held up to the world\u2019s moral and political failures,\u201d she said. Recalling reckonings over corporate complicity in apartheid South Africa and Nazi Germany, Albanese said Palestine today represents a defining moment of whether global markets can exist without promoting and profiting from injustice and impunity.<\/p>\n \u201cEnding this genocide requires not only outrage but rupture, reckoning, and the courage to dismantle what enables it.\u201d<\/p>\n To learn more about Special Procedures of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council and the Question of Palestine, click here to visit the dedicated webpage.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n On 4 July, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Between 2 and 4 July, Israeli settlers, visibly acting with the support and acquiescence of Israel, the occupying power, forcibly displaced the long-established Palestinian community of Arab Al Ka\u2019abneh \u2014 also known as Arab Mulaihat and Al-Muarrajat East \u2014 in the central Jordan Valley and established new settlement outposts.<\/p>\n Since 7 October 2023, the community has been gradually surrounded by new outposts and subjected to constant settler attacks. Following the establishment of another new outpost in the middle of the community, on 2 July this year, armed settlers from the nearby \u201cZohar outpost\u201d stole approximately 60 sheep and harassed the Palestinian residents in their homes. Settlers occupied one of the homes, vandalized it, and forced the residents to leave. Later that night and the day after, the remaining 25 families of the community were also left with no choice but to leave after settlers seized their homes. The land now stands empty of Palestinians. Meanwhile, photos from the site show settlers and soldiers having already taken control of the land.<\/p>\n The forcible displacement of this community follows dozens of others over the past months, forming part of a long-standing, state-sanctioned process through coordinated efforts by settlers, backed by the Israeli army, to empty parts of the occupied territory in the West Bank of Palestinians.<\/p>\n In the south Hebron Hills, since January this year, Israeli settlers from the Carmel settlement, with the support of soldiers, have been encroaching on land belonging to the Palestinian community of Umm Al Khair. This encroachment \u2014 reportedly to establish a so-called \u201cbuffer zone\u201d \u2014 has involved fencing off large areas of land and denying Palestinian residents access to pasture for livestock. On 29 June, an armed settler, again backed by Israeli soldiers, entered the community with his flock, seized a plot of land adjacent to a Palestinian home and declared it as his own. Since then, the same settler has harassed the community on a daily basis, attempting to enter their homes and intimidate residents.<\/p>\n These incidents form part of the ongoing annexation of territory, forcible transfer of Palestinians, and the transfer of Israel\u2019s own civilian population into the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Such forcible transfers amount to a war crime, and a crime against humanity if committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.<\/p>\n The following <\/em>remarks<\/em><\/a> were delivered by the ±¬ÁÏÍø Palestinian Rights Committee Chair, Amb. Coly Seck on 9 July at the 2025 ±¬ÁÏÍø-OIC <\/em>Conference<\/em><\/a> on the Question of Jerusalem titled \u201cPalestinian Oppression and Displacement in Jerusalem in the Shadow of the War:\u202fA microcosm of the situation throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory\u201d.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Senegal,<\/p>\n Excellencies,<\/p>\n Ladies and gentlemen,<\/p>\n On behalf of the Committee on the Rights of the Palestinian People, I warmly welcome Her Excellency Ms. Yassine Fall, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Senegal, to the\u00a02025 Jerusalem Conference<\/em><\/a>. We are grateful to the Government and people of Senegal for hosting this timely Jerusalem Conference. Our sincere thanks also go to Mr. Sim\u00e3o, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, for delivering the statement of the United Nations.<\/p>\n We gather today to focus on occupied East Jerusalem, a city sacred to three major world religions, Islam, Judaism and Christianity, and a core symbol of Palestinian identity. Its fate resonates far beyond its boundaries, shaping perceptions and realities throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the broader region. It lies at the heart of the Israeli Palestinian conflict.<\/p>\n Since its occupation in 1967, and later annexation, East Jerusalem has endured systemic attempts to alter its demographic and cultural character. The city of East Jerusalem epitomizes the original example of Israel pushing its settler agenda, through the expulsion of entire Palestinian families from their homes and installing Jewish-Israeli settlers in their place. This approach is now replicated in the occupied West Bank and openly contemplated for Gaza.<\/p>\n Developments in this city reflect the plight of the Palestinian People who have been suffering from an ongoing catastrophe, a \u201cNakba\u201d in Arabic, for decades.<\/p>\n The General Assembly mandated our Committee to highlight the centrality of the city of Jerusalem to the ongoing efforts for the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinians and their quest for independence. In this regard, East Jerusalem reflects in particular the broader realities of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, where Palestinians endure the consequences of ongoing violations under an illegal occupation that affects every aspect of the daily life of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.<\/p>\n While the world\u2019s gaze is fixed on Gaza conflict and humanitarian crisis, Israel has accelerated its de facto annexation of the West Bank. In 2025 alone, over 40,000 Palestinians have been displaced, amid escalating settlement expansion, settler violence, and land seizures at an alarming rate. In the north, displacement from refugee camps has reached levels not seen since 1967. Since the beginning of 2025, over 40,000 Palestinians have been forcefully displaced amid illegal settlement expansion and systemic land seizures. As the ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA Commissioner-General recently affirmed, this silent annexation constitutes a blatant violation of international law.<\/p>\n We urge Israel to halt and reverse these illegal actions and uphold its obligations under international law.<\/p>\n In Gaza, the humanitarian emergency is unbearable. Civilians are facing starvation, homes and schools are flattened, vital aid is obstructed, and hope is vanishing. Attacks on humanitarian personnel and infrastructure, including hospitals and ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA facilities, are tragic and are crimes against humanity. Humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations and its partners, are ready and equipped to deliver aid efficiently to the people of Gaza. Still, they are prevented by Israeli authorities from addressing the ongoing humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA, in particular, continues to be targeted all over the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Nearly 320 of its staff have been killed in Gaza. The targeted campaign against the Agency is a direct assault on the rights of Palestinians, including the right of return for millions of Palestine Refugees. The forced closure of ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA schools in East Jerusalem signals an ominous trend, threatening the future of 84 schools across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which are under the threat of demolition orders.<\/p>\n As members of the international community, we have a collective duty to protect the Palestinian people, uphold their rights, and ensure international law prevails. We must reclaim the discourse or narrative on East Jerusalem from Israeli extremists and support the Palestinian residents facing institutional neglect and separation from the rest of the West Bank.<\/p>\n Ladies and Gentlemen,<\/p>\n The General Assembly, through resolution ES-10\/24, has called for an end to Israel\u2019s illegal occupation. With less than three months remaining to act, we urge Israel to reverse its unlawful policies, measures and actions that entrench its control, occupation and threat to permanently annex the territory, including East Jerusalem and parts of the West Bank. This must stop immediately.<\/p>\n To this end, today\u2019s Jerusalem Conference is an opportunity not only to assess the realities in East Jerusalem but also to mobilize tangible action for the city\u2019s resilient development. Africa, in particular, has a profound role to play in advancing justice and solidarity, as evidenced by legal proceedings brought before the ICJ by South Africa and other countries, and the emergence of the Hague Group, a global bloc of states committed to \u201ccoordinated legal and diplomatic measures\u201d in defence of international law and solidarity with the people of Palestine.<\/p>\n We commend France and Saudi Arabia for their efforts to reschedule the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution. The relevance of this gathering is further underscored by its alignment with these efforts. It is therefore essential to maintain momentum and ensure the international community remains focused and united.<\/p>\n The time for symbolic gestures has passed. The process of annexation and dispossession is accelerating. We must respond with meaningful, coordinated actions. The two-State Solution, with East Jerusalem as the capital of an independent State of Palestine, is not an aspiration. It is an imperative. Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem cannot wait. Thank you.<\/p>\n \u00a0On 9 July, the following <\/em>message<\/em><\/a> of ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres was read at the 2025 ±¬ÁÏÍø-OIC Conference on the Question of Jerusalem by Barrie Freeman,\u202fDeputy SRSG of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Office for West Africa and the Sahel.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n I thank the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation for co-organizing this conference.<\/p>\n I salute Senegal for hosting \u2014 a powerful example of African solidarity with the Palestinian people. You come together at a time when Palestinian suffering has reached new heights and hopes for a just and lasting solution have reached new depths.<\/p>\n Following the terror attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on 7 October 2023 \u2014 which I have unequivocally condemned \u2014 the Israeli military operations have created a humanitarian crisis of horrific proportions, more dire today than at any point in this long and brutal crisis.<\/p>\n It is time for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The immediate and unconditional release of all hostages in a dignified manner. Full, safe and sustained humanitarian access.<\/p>\n ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA\u2019s mandated role in supporting Palestinian refugees must be respected. And obligations under international humanitarian law and Security Council resolutions must also be respected.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the situation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is in freefall. This year alone, over 150 Palestinians, including over 20 children, were killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in Israeli security forces operations, attacks by settlers and other incidents.<\/p>\n Armed Israeli settler violence has surged, with many Palestinians killed, including sometimes in the proximity \u2014 and with the support \u2014 of Israeli security forces. Since early 2025, tens of thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee by Israeli security forces operations. Illegal settlement expansion, large-scale land seizures and demolitions of Palestinian-owned structures continue unabated.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s policies in East Jerusalem, including restrictions on Palestinian access and worship, are deeply troubling. Jerusalem \u2014 Al-Quds \u2014 holds a unique place in the hearts of millions of Muslims, Jews and Christians around the world. What happens in Jerusalem \u2014 including continued provocations and incitements to violence \u2014 reverberates globally.<\/p>\n The position of the United Nations is clear: The status of Jerusalem cannot be altered by unilateral actions, including settlement activities in occupied East Jerusalem. It can only be resolved through negotiations between the parties. Jerusalem\u2019s demographic and historical character must be preserved. Respecting and upholding the\u00a0status quo\u00a0<\/em>at the Holy Sites is essential.<\/p>\n The International Court of Justice, in its Advisory Opinion of 19 July 2024, affirmed that Israel\u2019s occupation of the Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Gaza, is unlawful. Israel has an obligation to bring an end to its presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible.<\/p>\n The only realistic, just, and sustainable path is the two-State solution, with Israel and an independent, democratic, contiguous, viable and sovereign Palestinian State, with Gaza as an integral part \u2014 living side by side in peace within secure, recognized pre-1967 borders, and with Jerusalem as the capital of both States.<\/p>\n The two-State solution remains the only framework rooted in international law, endorsed by numerous General Assembly resolutions, and supported by the international community.<\/p>\n This conference offers a timely platform to mobilize collective efforts towards this solution, and the just and lasting peace that Palestinians and Israelis deserve. Now is the time to choose the path of peace. For Palestinians. For Israelis. For the people of the Middle East and the world.<\/p>\n The following is a <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a> issued by the ±¬ÁÏÍø High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker T\u00fcrk on 10 July.<\/em><\/p>\n I urge the prompt reversal of U.S. sanctions against a\u00a0Special Rapporteur of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council, Francesca Albanese<\/em><\/a>, in response to work she has undertaken under the mandate on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.<\/p>\n ±¬ÁÏÍø Special Rapporteurs, along with other parts of the human rights ecosystem, address \u2013 by their nature \u2013 sensitive and often divisive issues, that are of international concern.<\/p>\n Even in face of fierce disagreement, ±¬ÁÏÍø Member States should engage substantively and constructively, rather than resort to punitive measures.<\/p>\n Attacks and threats against Special Procedures mandate holders, as well as key institutions like the International Criminal Court, must stop. The solution is not less, but more, debate and dialogue on the very real human rights concerns they address.<\/p>\n On 10 July, the Coordination Committee of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Coordination Committee of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council today strongly condemned the US Government\u2019s sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the Special Rapporteur of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council, Francesca Albanese<\/em><\/a>, for allegedly assisting the International Criminal Court in taking action against the US or Israel officials.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are not only sanctions against one independent human rights expert appointed by the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council. Rather, they reflect the continued assault of the current US administration on the entire ±¬ÁÏÍø system and its core values of human rights, justice, accountability\u00a0and the rule of law,\u201d the Committee said.<\/p>\n The Committee pointed out that Francesca Albanese has only been discharging her mandate given by the Human Rights Council, which specifically requests the Special Rapporteur to investigate Israel\u2019s violations of the principles and bases of international law, international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967. \u201cDespite facing very challenging circumstances, including intimidation and coordinated personal attacks (including against her family members), Albanese has been operating in line with the Code of Conduct for Special Procedures mandate holders,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n \u201cDocumenting and exposing the grave violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law committed by Israel and other actors is work that should be supported by States, not sanctioned or undermined. We applaud the courage of Francesca Albanese in speaking truth to power and stand in solidarity with her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDespite such attempts to intimidate ±¬ÁÏÍø Special Procedures mandate holders, we will continue to act independently and with integrity to discharge our mandates given by the Human Rights Council to uphold international human rights standards,\u201d the Committee said.<\/p>\n They stressed that sanctions will not silence Albanese or other mandate holders performing their legitimate work to hold all States and other actors accountable for human rights violations.<\/p>\n \u201cRemaining silent in the face of such blatant disregard and contempt for human rights law is not an option,\u201d the Committee said, calling on all States, the Human Rights Council and members of the international community to act decisively to defend the multilateral system for the promotion and protection of human rights and condemn this unjustified attack on Francesca Albanese and the ±¬ÁÏÍø human rights system as a whole.<\/p>\n \u201cThe ongoing erosion of the human rights ecosystem and its accountability mechanisms can no longer be ignored,\u201d the Committee said.<\/p>\n To learn more about Special Procedures of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council and the Question of Palestine, click here to visit the dedicated webpage.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n On 11 July, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Israeli military continues to kill and gravely injure hundreds of Palestinians as they desperately seek the little shelter and food available, raising further concerns that Israel is inflicting on Palestinians conditions of life increasingly incompatible with their continued existence in Gaza.<\/p>\n The Israeli military has continued intense attacks on makeshift tents of Palestinians who have fled or lost their homes, many multiple times, killing and injuring them. Between 8 and 9 July, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights office in the occupied Palestinian territory recorded that at least 77 people were killed, among them at least 30 children and women, in 21 attacks on tents of displaced Palestinians, including 9 in Al Mawasi, Khan Younis.<\/p>\n As these tents generally shelter families in close quarters, any strike on them often results in the killing of entire families. It is difficult to see how such actions comply with the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law: distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack. In a recent example, on 8 July, an Israeli drone reportedly struck a tent of displaced Palestinians in Al Attar area, southwestern Khan Younis, killing 12 people \u2013 10 of whom were from the same family. The victims included a couple and their 3 children.<\/p>\n Israeli attacks have also continued on residential buildings, many of which have been systematically destroyed, shrinking the options for shelter available to the population and driving further displacement.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Palestinians seeking food \u2014 mostly young men and boys \u2014 continue to be shot and killed in the vicinity of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites. Reports indicate the Israeli military is targeting large groups of civilians with lethal force, including shooting and shelling, in the absence of any threat to life or serious injury. Despite these dangers, Palestinians have little choice, as the entire population faces starvation, while Israel continues to unlawfully limit the entry into Gaza of basic items indispensable to the survival of the civilian population. Since GHF started operating in Gaza on 27 May, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights office has recorded that more than 634 Palestinians were killed in the vicinity of sites run by them, as of 10 July at noon.<\/p>\n We are concerned that the GHF\u2019s poor operational methods, including leaving food at sites without announcement, operating very short opening hours \u2013 sometimes for only 3-4 minutes and in the middle of the night \u2013 and erratic closures for days at a time, have fuelled further instability. In this context, the food distribution sites appear to continue to attract desperate Palestinians, even when there are no deliveries. For example, despite no announcements that the GHF Saudi site in northwestern Rafah would be open on 8 July, 6 Palestinians, including 3 boys, were reportedly killed in the vicinity, while another 8 were killed on 9 July. On the morning of 11 July, 10 Palestinians were reportedly killed and 60 injured, again in the same area.<\/p>\n Israeli military attacks on Palestinians occur in the context of increasing civil disorder. According to the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights office in OPT, intra-Palestinian violence involving Palestinian armed groups and different criminal groups have also been on the rise, with allegations that some groups have been receiving external support, further sowing distrust and disorder in a community where law enforcement and judicial systems have been largely destroyed.<\/p>\n These conditions, along with highly restricted entry of food and other basic necessities and reported plans by Israeli authorities to concentrate much of the population in a so-called \u201chumanitarian city\u201d in Rafah, possibly with the intention to forcibly displace them outside Gaza altogether, may amount to atrocity crimes.<\/p>\n We call on Israel to comply with fundamental rules and principles governing the conduct of hostilities. As the occupying power in Gaza, it also has the obligation to ensure the provision of basic necessities, including food, and to facilitate humanitarian organisations\u2019 access to provide such assistance, and must also maintain public life and order in full compliance with international human rights law standards applicable to law enforcement. It must respect and protect the right to life of civilians seeking food at GHF sites, and refrain from taking any steps aimed at, or which may result in, the forcible transfer of the Palestinian population within Gaza or its deportation outside of the strip.<\/p>\n On 15 July, the spokesperson for the ±¬ÁÏÍø High Commissioner for Human Rights issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Israeli settlers and security forces have intensified their killings, attacks and harassment of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in the past weeks. This includes the demolition of hundreds of homes and forced mass displacement of Palestinians, contributing to the ongoing consolidation of annexation of West Bank territory by Israel, in violation of international law.<\/p>\n Since the launch of Israel\u2019s operation \u201cIron Wall\u201d in the north of the occupied West Bank earlier this year, about 30,000 Palestinians remain forcibly displaced. Israeli forces have shot live ammunition at unarmed Palestinians, including those attempting to go back to their homes in the refugee camps of Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams.<\/p>\n Israeli security forces have often used unnecessary or disproportionate force, including lethal force against Palestinians who did not pose an imminent threat to life. The youngest victim, two-year-old Laila Khatib, was shot in the head by Israeli security forces on 25 January while she was inside her house in Ash-Shuhada village, in Jenin. On 3 July, 61-year-old Walid Badir was shot and killed by Israeli security forces, reportedly while he was cycling back home from prayers, passing through the outskirts of the Nur Shams camp.<\/p>\n Laila and Walid are among at least 964 Palestinians killed since 7 October 2023 by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.<\/p>\n Also, since 7 October 2023, 53 Israelis have been killed in reported attacks by Palestinians or in armed clashes, 35 in the West Bank and 18 in Israel.<\/p>\n In June, the ±¬ÁÏÍø recorded the highest monthly injury toll of Palestinians in over two decades. In all, 96* Palestinians were injured by Israeli settlers. During the first half of 2025, there have been 757 settler attacks that resulted in Palestinian casualties or property damage \u2014 a 13 per cent increase on the same period in 2024.<\/p>\n Since the start of operation \u201cIron Wall\u201d, Israeli security forces have issued demolition orders for about 1,400 homes. These large-scale demolitions, if not rendered absolutely necessary by military operations, violate Israel\u2019s obligations as the occupying power.<\/p>\n Israeli demolitions have displaced 2,907 Palestinians across the West Bank since 7 October 2023. In the same period, a further 2,400 Palestinians, nearly half of them children, have been forcibly displaced as a result of the actions of Israeli settlers thus emptying large parts of the West Bank of Palestinians.<\/p>\n Permanently displacing the civilian population within occupied territory amounts to unlawful transfer, a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and, depending on the circumstances, may also amount to a crime against humanity.<\/p>\n Israel must immediately stop these killings, harassment and home demolitions across the occupied Palestinian territory. As the occupying power, Israel must take all feasible measures to ensure public order and safety in the West Bank. It is under the obligation to protect Palestinians from settler attacks and to end the unlawful use of force by its security forces. There must be thorough, independent and transparent investigations into all killings and all other alleged violations of international law. Those responsible must be held to account.<\/p>\n In line with the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice, Israel must bring to an end its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory.<\/p>\n * Following further corroboration after the issuance of this briefing note, the figure rose to 100. In all, 100 Palestinians were injured by Israeli settlers in June 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n The following is a <\/em>briefing<\/em><\/a> to the Security Council on the Middle East by Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator on 16 July.<\/em><\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n I want to remind this Council why we are briefing you today.<\/p>\n The General Assembly gave us a humanitarian mandate \u2013 in resolution 46\/182 \u2013 and a set of principles that you as Member States have asked us to uphold: humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence. That means aid must go where needs are greatest and without discrimination. It means we answer to civilians in need, not the warring parties.<\/p>\n Our mandate is also to advocate for international humanitarian law \u2013 not just to report to you on what we witness, but so that you, this Council, can take action. Even when those responsible would rather silence us.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n We are beyond vocabulary to describe conditions in Gaza. So let me instead share facts:<\/p>\n Food is running out. Those seeking it risk being shot. People are dying trying to feed their families. Field hospitals receive dead bodies, and medical workers hear stories firsthand from the injured. Day, after day, after day.<\/p>\n Starvation rates among children hit their highest levels in June, with over 5,800 girls and boys diagnosed as acutely malnourished.<\/p>\n Last week, amid this hunger crisis, children and women were killed in a strike while waiting for the food supplements to keep them alive.<\/p>\n And Hamas continue to hold hostages, and we have received reports of their attacks on aid workers.<\/p>\n The health system is shattered. Only 17 of 36 hospitals and 63 of 170 primary healthcare centres are functioning, all only partially, even as mass casualties arrive daily.<\/p>\n In some hospitals, five babies share one incubator. Seventy per cent of essential medicines are out of stock.<\/p>\n Half of all medical equipment has been damaged. Pregnant women give birth without medical care. Women and girls manage menstruation without basic sanitary supplies.<\/p>\n Water, sanitation systems are broken. Roughly four of every five of these facilities, including water points, are now located within militarized zones or areas under displacement orders \u2013 so, even if they are functional, they are out of reach for those who depend on them.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n The fuel crisis in Gaza remains at a critical threshold.<\/p>\n Last week, Israeli authorities agreed to allow two trucks of fuel to Gaza per day, five days a week, through the Kerem Shalom crossing, and we have some indication that approvals may increase slightly. We hope these will materialize.<\/p>\n This is the first time any fuel has been allowed to enter the Strip in 130 days, and still no petrol has been permitted, which fuels many ambulances and other critical services.<\/p>\n Two trucks provide a fraction of what\u2019s required to run essential life-sustaining services.<\/p>\n And even when fuel is allowed in for humanitarian purposes, our access to storing and moving it to where it is needed is not guaranteed.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Turning to the West Bank, there is continued loss of life and livelihoods, movement restrictions, growing displacement. Over the weekend, two Palestinian youths were killed in a settler attack near Ramallah. One was beaten to death; another was fatally shot. Dozens were injured. And ambulances were blocked from reaching the wounded.<\/p>\n Settler violence is escalating at an alarming rate, and Palestinian communities are being displaced, injured and their property damaged. Each day this year, the ±¬ÁÏÍø has documented an average of four incidents of settler violence against Palestinians and their property. In June, 100 Palestinians were injured by Israeli settlers, the highest number in two decades.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Gaza\u2019s soaring humanitarian needs must be met without drawing people into a firing line. Israel, as the occupying power, is obligated to ensure that people have food and medical supplies. But that is not happening. Instead, civilians are exposed to death and injury, forcible displacement, stripped of dignity.<\/p>\n It is for you to draw your own conclusions. But surely, we do not need to debate whether killing civilians waiting in line for life\u2019s essentials meets the responsibility to provide for civilian needs.<\/p>\n We are awaiting the outcome of Israel\u2019s investigation into this, and earlier incidents. I hope that you will consider whether Israel\u2019s rules of engagement incorporate all feasible precautions to avoid and minimize civilian harm in all circumstances.<\/p>\n This means, here as elsewhere, verifying targets, giving effective advance warnings, carefully choosing tactics and weapons, and cancelling or suspending an attack if it would cause disproportionate civilian harm.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Each time that we report on what we see, we face threats of further reduced access to the civilians we are trying to serve.<\/p>\n We face that tension everywhere, but nowhere is that tension between our advocacy mandate and delivering aid greater than in Gaza. Visas are not renewed or reduced in duration, explicitly in response to our work on protection of civilians. Security clearances are not granted for staff to enter Gaza to continue their work.<\/p>\n And humanitarian partners are increasingly denied entry to Gaza. In 2025, 56 per cent of the entries denied were for Emergency Medical Teams.<\/p>\n Of course, as you know, hundreds of aid workers have been killed; and those who continue to work endure hunger, danger and loss, like everyone else in the Gaza Strip. Personal tragedies continue to echo through our teams and their families. This morning another ICRC colleague was killed.<\/p>\n I pay tribute to them all and to the courage of the work of ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF and other agencies inside Gaza. Thousands, including many of our colleagues who are injured, are not able to leave to seek treatment.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Let me walk you briefly through what it takes to deliver your aid \u2013 the aid you fund \u2013 into Gaza.<\/p>\n Something as simple as a bag of flour:<\/p>\n Before reaching the crossing into Gaza, it must clear multiple layers of approval, including customs involving several ministries.<\/p>\n Once approved, it is scanned, loaded onto Israeli trucks, and often re-inspected at Kerem Shalom.<\/p>\n From there, it is either moved by pre-approved Palestinian trucks up the fence road that runs along Gaza\u2019s border or transferred to so-called sterile trucks which offload on the Palestinian side of the crossing and are picked up in different sized trucks from Gaza.<\/p>\n It\u2019s why counting trucks is often misleading \u2013 because it\u2019s not always a ratio of one-to-one.<\/p>\n Once inside Gaza, movement requires navigating an obstacle course of coordination with Israeli forces, through active hostilities, traveling on damaged roads, and often being forced to wait at holding points or pass through areas controlled by criminal gangs. And distribution is uncertain, as starving people often try to grab the flour off the back of our trucks.<\/p>\n With these obstacles in place, your generous contribution may never reach our distribution points. And even if it does, getting it at scale to those in need remains deeply uncertain. And as I have said before, it doesn\u2019t have to be this way.<\/p>\n We have a plan that works. It requires predictable aid, of different types and at scale, entering multiple crossings where people do not come under fire, travelling on routes that we choose, without long delays, being delivered to our warehouses and distribution points according to established ±¬ÁÏÍø aid mechanisms and humanitarian principles \u2013 the principles that you have given us the mandate to uphold.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Even as this broader plan remains stalled, and despite severe restrictions, thousands of colleagues on the ground \u2013 daily, at great personal risk \u2013 are still delivering life-saving aid.<\/p>\n Between 19th of May, when limited aid entry resumed, and the 14th of July, only 1,633 trucks \u2013 62 per cent of the roughly 2,600 submitted to the Israeli authorities, 74 per cent of those approved for entry \u2013 reached Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings.<\/p>\n They carried mainly wheat flour, alongside limited quantities of food for kitchens, nutrition supplies, medical supplies, chlorine. After multiple steps of cargo offloading and uploading on different vehicles, a total of 1,600 Palestinian trucks could be collected for distribution inside Gaza.<\/p>\n Last week alone, we had 21 Emergency Medical Teams deployed providing life-saving services and some relief to doctors in Gaza; 238 pallets of medical supplies entered, including 10 cold-chain pallets with 1,396 blood units and 1,550 plasma doses \u2013 enough for 10 days.<\/p>\n We supported 800 weekly medical consultations for women and girls, enabled 84 kitchens to serve 260,000 meals daily, and delivered 17,000 cubic metres of drinking water through 1,300 collection points. This is life-saving support provided with dignity.<\/p>\n But to be clear, it\u2019s a drop in the ocean of what is needed, compared to the average of 630 truckloads that entered daily during the ceasefire.<\/p>\n The ceasefire proved what\u2019s possible. And we need to return to those levels without delay.<\/p>\n Now, our work \u2013 the ±¬ÁÏÍø and its partners \u2013 is by no means perfect, but it is rooted in humanitarian principles, practices honed over decades of experience across the globe, steadfast commitment to saving lives. And we ask you again, please, let us work.<\/p>\n In this respect, I welcome the recent agreement between the European Union and Israel on humanitarian access. We look forward to hearing more of the detail, and to understanding how implementation will be assessed.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Let me remind this Council that the International Court of Justice has demanded that Israel take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n With these facts before you, I ask you as a Council to assess whether Israel is meeting its international legal obligations and whether we humanitarians can fulfil our mandate.<\/p>\n Is this allowing and facilitating rapid, unimpeded passage of impartial humanitarian relief, as the rules of war demand? Or is it obstruction? You will draw your own conclusions.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n Weeks ago, an Israeli minister called allowing aid into Gaza a \u201cdisastrous decision,\u201d while another implied that starvation might be \u201cjustified and moral\u201d until hostages are freed \u2013 and they must be freed.<\/p>\n Intentionally using the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare would of course be a war crime.<\/p>\n Most recently, Israel\u2019s Defence Minister talked openly about moving Palestinians into what he called a \u2018humanitarian city.\u2019<\/p>\n We understand that the proposal is to forcibly displace Palestinians to a designated zone near Rafah. Now I don\u2019t know how to describe this, but it is not humanitarian.<\/p>\n Mr. President,<\/p>\n States and armed groups must uphold the rules \u2013 forged because of the horrors of conflict and hatred \u2013 that protect civilians in war.<\/p>\n Today, across the world, we watch these rules being corroded and degraded.<\/p>\n Again, it is of course for you to decide how you act to ensure that all parties respect international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n But I agree with some members of the Israeli cabinet that you have consistently overestimated your powers of quiet persuasion.<\/p>\n We hold all parties to the standards of international law in this conflict. We don\u2019t have to choose \u2013 and in fact, we must not choose \u2013 between demanding the end to the starvation of civilians in Gaza and demanding the unconditional release of all the hostages.<\/p>\n And we must reject antisemitism. We must fight it with every fiber of our DNA. But we must also hold Israel to the same principles and laws of all other states.<\/p>\n So civilians must be protected wherever they are. Hostages must be released \u2013 I say it again. Humanitarian aid must be allowed to enter at scale. And humanitarian workers must be protected.<\/p>\n You owe that to Israeli and Palestinian civilians, to the last hopes of a sustainable peace, and to the ±¬ÁÏÍø Charter.<\/p>\n All members of this Council have been unequivocal: ceasefire, ceasefire, ceasefire. Thank you.<\/p>\n On 16 July, ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell delivered the following <\/em>remarks<\/em><\/a> on the humanitarian situation for children in Gaza at the ±¬ÁÏÍø Security Council meeting.<\/em><\/p>\n Excellencies, good afternoon. Thank you to Pakistan, as president of the Council, and to Member States for bringing us together this afternoon. Thank you for inviting ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF to share our firsthand perspective on this desperate situation for Gaza\u2019s 1 million children.<\/p>\n From the beginning of the present conflict, children \u2013 Palestinian and Israeli \u2013 have suffered terribly. Children have been killed, traumatized, and taken hostage. Children have been orphaned and injured. Children are hungry and lack clean water. Children are out of school, and the safety of their homes is a distant memory.<\/p>\n Children are not political actors. They do not start conflicts, and they are powerless to stop them. But they suffer greatly, and they wonder why the world has failed them. And make no mistake, we have failed them.<\/p>\n Over the past 21 months of war, more than 17,000 children have reportedly been killed and 33,000 injured in Gaza. An average of 28 children have been killed each day \u2013 the equivalent of an entire classroom. Consider that for a moment. A whole classroom of children killed, every day for nearly two years.<\/p>\n These children are not combatants. They are being killed and maimed as they line up for lifesaving food and medicine.<\/p>\n Last week, 15 Palestinians, including nine children and four women, were killed by a strike while waiting in line for ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF nutritional supplies in Deir al Balah.<\/p>\n Among the survivors was Donia, a mother seeking a lifeline for her family after months of desperation and hunger. Donia\u2019s 1-year-old son, Mohammed, was killed in the attack after speaking his first words just hours earlier. When we spoke with Donia, she was lying critically injured in a hospital bed, clutching Mohammed\u2019s tiny shoe.<\/p>\n This past weekend, 10 people, including seven children, were killed in an attack while collecting drinking water. And just today, at least 20 people, some of whom were children, were reportedly killed in a chaotic surge of people at a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution site in southern Gaza.<\/p>\n Between May 27th and July 7th, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Office recorded the killings of 798 Palestinian civilians \u2013 including children \u2013 desperate to find food, at or near distribution sites and humanitarian convoys.<\/p>\n At the same time, the situation in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has significantly deteriorated. Since the start of the year, 33 Palestinian children have been killed in militarized operations and settler attacks. More than 32,000 people have been forcibly displaced, while the demolition of homes and roads, and the use of explosive weapons in populated areas continue.<\/p>\n In addition, the number of Palestinian children from the West Bank in detention for alleged security-related offences has reached its highest level in seven years. This includes 120 children detained without charge or trial, under administrative detention orders.<\/p>\n Excellencies, children who survive the war in Gaza will be forever affected by the deprivation and exposure to traumatic events they have experienced. Even before the war began, half of Gaza\u2019s child population needed mental health and psychological support. Today, all of Gaza\u2019s children need these services.<\/p>\n Children in Gaza are enduring catastrophic living conditions, including severe food insecurity and malnutrition.<\/p>\n Of the more than 113,000 children screened for malnutrition in June, nearly 6,000 were found to be acutely malnourished. This represents a staggering 180 per cent increase in acute malnutrition cases compared to February.<\/p>\n These severely malnourished children need consistent, supervised treatment, along with safe water and medical care to survive.<\/p>\n Water production capacity has plummeted, and as a result, 95 per cent of households in Gaza do not have access to adequate water. Water pumping, desalination, and wastewater treatment are all operating at significantly reduced capacity because of the lack of fuel. And sanitation services are nearing collapse.<\/p>\n With clean water increasingly difficult to access, children have little choice but to drink contaminated water. This is increasing the risk of disease outbreaks, with water borne diseases now making up 44 per cent of all healthcare consultations.<\/p>\n We continue to see more cases of diarrheal and respiratory infections in children under five. And in recent days, our ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF team in Gaza have been responding to a meningitis outbreak with dozens of infants now gravely ill.<\/p>\n Thousands of children urgently need emergency medical support. Children with traumatic injuries and severe pre-existing medical conditions are at risk of death because the medical care they need is unavailable in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n Hospitals that are still able to operate are overwhelmed, with emergency departments operating at full capacity and occupancy exceeding 100 per cent. These facilities are facing severe shortages of essential medicine and fuel, disrupting critical care and leaving some operating rooms in the dark. Access to critical newborn care has been reduced by nearly 70 per cent.<\/p>\n At least 12,500 patients with severe injuries, chronic diseases, and complex medical conditions need urgent medical evacuation, including thousands of children. But only a small number of countries are taking in patients from Gaza, resulting in even more preventable deaths.<\/p>\n Here, I would like to commend those countries, including those in the region, that are accepting patients from Gaza.<\/p>\n Until Gaza\u2019s health care system has sufficient capacity, ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF is calling for increased support for medical evacuations, with the guarantee that all evacuated patients and their caregivers can return to Gaza following treatment and recovery.<\/p>\n Excellencies, after almost 11 weeks of a complete aid blockade, authorities have permitted a trickle of ±¬ÁÏÍø supplies to enter the Gaza Strip beginning in mid-May. It is nowhere near enough. Between May 19th and July 2nd, authorities allowed an average of 30 ±¬ÁÏÍø trucks per day to offload aid at designated crossings. This included ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF nutrition products, water treatment supplies, and vaccines.<\/p>\n But 30 trucks a day are a fraction of what is needed for two million people to survive.<\/p>\n We continue to call on the authorities to permit the entry and delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza at sufficient speed and scale to meet the urgent needs of children and families.<\/p>\n This includes fuel. With electricity cut off since the start of the war, all operations inside the Gaza Strip \u2013 hospital generators, ambulances, bakeries, water and sanitation facilities, and the communication network \u2013depend on fuel. A crippling fuel shortage is now forcing essential services to shut down, putting the lives of over a million children at risk. Fuel must be consistently allowed into Gaza, in sufficient quantities to sustain life-saving operations.<\/p>\n Excellencies, for the last several months, the ±¬ÁÏÍø-led humanitarian response has been sidelined \u2013 despite the fact that during the March ceasefire, we were delivering assistance in an efficient and safe manner.<\/p>\n This included essential vaccines and neonatal care, lifesaving nutrition services, and access to clean water, provided through more than 400 distribution points across Gaza.<\/p>\n ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF and our partners went even further \u2013 delivering aid door-to-door, reaching malnourished children and pregnant mothers directly in their places of refuge.<\/p>\n We implore you, again, to ensure that ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF and our humanitarian partners are allowed to do our jobs. We have proven that essentials like medicine, vaccines, water, food, and nutrition for babies can reach those in need, wherever they are, when we have appropriate access. We urgently need a return to the functioning U.N.-led aid pipeline with safe and sustained humanitarian access through all available crossings.<\/p>\n In addition, ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF reiterates the Secretary-General\u2019s appeal to ensure that all aid delivery is demilitarized and grounded in the principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence. Civilian safety must be paramount. I urge this Council to use its full weight to press parties to accept these principles and rules.<\/p>\n Excellencies, in Gaza, the effects of the violence perpetrated on children have been catastrophic. International law is clear: all parties to the conflict have an obligation to protect civilians and ensure the safe and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n We call on all parties to immediately act to protect children. We call on Israel to urgently review its rules of engagement to ensure full compliance with international humanitarian law, notably the protection of civilians, including children, and to conduct thorough and independent investigations of incidents and alleged violations to ensure accountability.<\/p>\n And we call on all parties to abide by their legal obligations to ensure the survival and wellbeing of the civilian population, including through safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access.<\/p>\n We call on Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups to uphold international humanitarian law, including respect for facilities that civilians depend on and the facilitation of unimpeded access. In addition, they should immediately and unconditionally release all hostages held inside Gaza.<\/p>\n All parties to the conflict should urgently agree to a ceasefire, and we call on this Council to use all tools at its disposal to address human suffering and put an end to this war.<\/p>\n Lastly, we call on all Member States to use all their leverage to de-escalate the conflict in the meantime.<\/p>\n Excellencies, the simple truth is that we are failing Gaza\u2019s children. Seen through their eyes, our failure is a betrayal of their right to be children. Children who are healthy, safe, and educated. History will judge this failure harshly. And the children will judge it too. Children in Gaza, like children all over the world, deserve peace. Our job is to give children the future they deserve. We simply must do better. Thank you.<\/p>\n On 17 July, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (±¬ÁÏÍøRWA) issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Last week, a proposed amendment to the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) laws against ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA was published.<\/p>\n The amendment proposed by the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure contains two key proposals against ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly targeting East Jerusalem:<\/p>\n All ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA installations are United Nations premises and are protected by the privileges and immunities of the United Nations. The legislative action being taken against ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA and its presence in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, is unprecedented and violates Israel\u2019s obligations as a United Nations member state under the ±¬ÁÏÍø Charter.<\/p>\n This amendment threatens to further debilitate ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA\u2019s operations in the West Bank, after the forced closure of six of the Agency\u2019s schools in East Jerusalem two months ago. In particular, critical services to more than 200,000 Palestine Refugees in East Jerusalem are now at stake.<\/p>\n It is the duty of the international community at large to uphold ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA\u2019s humanitarian space, to ensure unhindered service provision, and to protect the rights of Palestine Refugees.<\/p>\n On 17 July, Reem Alsalem, the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The ±¬ÁÏÍø Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem, today called for immediate global action to halt what she described as an unfolding \u201cfemi-genocide\u201d in Gaza, saying the scale and nature of the crimes inflicted on Palestinian women and girls by Israeli forces are so extreme that existing concepts in legal and criminal frameworks can no longer adequately describe or capture them.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is happening to Palestinian women and girls is not collateral damage of war,\u201d Alsalem said. \u201cIt is the intentional destruction of their lives and bodies, for being Palestinian and for being women.\u201d<\/p>\n The Special Rapporteur reiterated findings from her recent report to the Human Rights Council stating that Israel is deliberately killing Palestinian women and girls with the intent to destroy them and the continuity of the Palestinian people. She called this a \u201cfemi-genocide\u201d. According to estimates, women and girls account for 67 percent of the 57,680 Palestinians killed by 9 July 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is more than one way to subject a people to genocide. Destroying them in whole or in part psychologically is one of them,\u201d the expert said. \u201cThe horrors that Palestinian mothers, in particular, continue to endure \u2014 watching their children slowly starve, killed, maimed, and buried alive \u2014 is killing them repeatedly in a single day. The psychological trauma they, and all Palestinians in Gaza, are suffering knows no boundaries.\u201d Many women, including mothers, have also been killed while seeking food and water for their families.<\/p>\n Alsalem highlighted the use of reproductive violence as part of Israel\u2019s campaign. \u201cThe destruction of Gaza\u2019s health infrastructure has reportedly left 150,000 pregnant and lactating women without access to essential care. An estimated 17,000 of these women and 60,000 children under five now suffer from acute malnutrition. At least 60 children have died from starvation since March 2025, following Israel\u2019s blockade on food, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is in addition to the 50,000 children who have been reported killed or injured since October 2023.\u201d<\/p>\n She condemned the Israeli authorities\u2019 latest move to block the entry of baby formula, while warning that the ongoing fuel shortages further endanger the lives of newborns in incubators. She noted that dozens of infants have been born prematurely, died shortly after birth, while others have been born with unprecedented genetic mutations, likely caused by starvation, trauma, and exposure to radioactive and toxic material.<\/p>\n The Special Rapporteur also raised alarm over reports of sexual violence, including rape, committed by Israeli forces. She stressed that, within Gaza, a climate of desperation, overcrowding and lack of assistance and protection services has led to spikes in sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and other forms of abuse, often perpetrated by family members and others within the community.<\/p>\n \u201cThe violence and atrocities that Palestinian women are subjected to have become so normalised that they are now the new accepted reality, even in other conflicts. No one seems to bat an eyelid anymore when hearing about the terror women are experiencing,\u201d the expert said. \u201cWith the dismantling of the law-based order and the protections it guarantees to civilians, the situation for women and girls is metastasising beyond Gaza and Palestine, with devastating consequences for all.\u201d<\/p>\n Alsalem urged States to spare no efforts to end the genocide in Gaza, ensure justice for all, and include the differentiated experiences of women and girls in all accountability processes. \u201cThe continuity of Palestinian life depends on it. Our collective humanity and future depend on it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n To learn more about Special Procedures of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council and the Question of Palestine, click here to visit the dedicated webpage.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n On 18 July, ±¬ÁÏÍø experts Gabriella Citroni (Chair-Rapporteur), Gra\u017cyna Baranowska (Vice-Chair),\u202fAua Bald\u00e9, Ana Lorena Delgadillo P\u00e9rez, and Mohammed Al-Obaidi,\u202fWorking Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; Francesca Albanese,\u202fSpecial Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967; Morris Tidball-Binz,\u202fSpecial Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Alice Jill Edwards,\u202fSpecial Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and Ben Saul,\u202fSpecial Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights, issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n About 4,000 Palestinians, including children and the elderly and 51 Israelis are still missing since 7 October 2023, ±¬ÁÏÍø experts said today, calling on authorities in both Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory to disclose the fate and whereabouts of all victims of enforced disappearance.<\/p>\n \u201cEnforced disappearances can never be justified, even during a state of war, instability or public emergency,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n Twenty months of assault by the Israeli army have resulted, among others, in widespread patterns of enforced disappearances among Palestinians in Gaza and other parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including health and care workers, journalists, and other professionals, as well as women and children, the experts said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis has been facilitated through military orders and legislation allowing for indefinite detention without trial of so-called \u2018unlawful combatants\u2019 and others, in breach of international human rights and humanitarian law,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n The experts said attacks perpetrated by Palestinian armed groups on 7 October 2023 led to many Israeli civilians being killed and 251 victims taken hostage. The whereabouts of at least 51 hostages remain unknown. These acts are tantamount to enforced disappearances, they said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe urgent need is for an end to hostilities, unconditional freeing of all hostages, and certainty on the fate and whereabouts of all those forcibly disappeared, no matter the circumstances, whether in detention or deceased,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n Through its humanitarian procedure, the Working Group continues to register cases and see patterns of disappeared persons and victims whose fate and whereabouts are unknown, in particular with persons last seen while trying to cross from the north of Gaza to the south or vice-versa at checkpoints, from hospitals and persons arrested by officers of the Israeli Defence Forces during ground operations.<\/p>\n \u201cThese detentions are not properly reported to families, registration of deprivation of liberty cannot be verified, and those in custody are unable to communicate with their families or legal representatives or to seek legal review of the grounds of their detention,\u201d they said. \u201cThe pain and suffering for relatives of the disappeared can constitute a form of psychological torture and other inhumane treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn cases of death in custody, authorities must promptly, impartially, independently and thoroughly investigate to establish the cause and manner of their deaths and return the bodies of victims to their families,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n Palestinian armed groups and Israeli Defence Forces must immediately, investigate and prevent enforced disappearances and acts tantamount, the experts said, calling for prompt, independent, impartial and thorough investigation, prosecution and sanction of those responsible.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is concerning that the figures for Palestinians who have been forcibly disappeared and missing are hugely underreported,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n They noted that relatives of victims are often reluctant to report cases or exchange information with Israeli Government officials, for fear of reprisals or lack of trust.<\/p>\n \u201cWe call for the immediate and unconditional release of the remaining hostages held in Gaza as well as the immediate disclosure of the fate, whereabouts, legal status and state of health of all Palestinians who have been forcibly disappeared,\u201d the experts said. They called for their immediate release, unless they are charged with an internationally recognisable criminal offence and prosecuted in proceedings that comply with international standards.<\/p>\n They urged families and civil society to report enforced disappearances and acts tantamount to relevant Special Procedures, including the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Working Group\u2019s primary task is to assist families in determining the fate and whereabouts of their relatives who have reportedly disappeared.<\/p>\n The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances raised these concerns in a communication<\/em><\/a>\u00a0to the Government of Israel, which is yet to provide a response.<\/p>\n To learn more about Special Procedures of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Council and the Question of Palestine, click here to visit the dedicated webpage.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a> was issued on 21 July by the spokesperson for ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Secretary-General is appalled by the accelerating breakdown of humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where the last lifelines keeping people alive are collapsing.<\/p>\n He deplores the growing reports of children and adults suffering from malnutrition.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General strongly condemns the ongoing violence, including the shooting, killing, and injuring of people attempting to get food for their families.<\/p>\n Civilians must be protected and respected, and they must never be targeted. The population in Gaza remains gravely undersupplied with the basic necessities of life.<\/p>\n Israel has the obligation to allow and facilitate by all the means at its disposal the humanitarian relief provided by the United Nations and by other humanitarian organizations.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General notes that the intensification of hostilities in recent days comes as the humanitarian system is being impeded, undermined and endangered.<\/p>\n A new evacuation order in parts of Deir al Balah \u2013 home to tens of thousands \u2013 pushes people into more desperate conditions and further displacement and restricts the United Nations\u2019 ability to deliver life-saving aid. ±¬ÁÏÍø staff remain in Deir al Balah, and two ±¬ÁÏÍø guesthouses have been struck, despite parties having been informed of the locations of ±¬ÁÏÍø premises, which are inviolable. These locations \u2013 as with all civilian sites \u2013 must be protected, regardless of evacuation orders.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General reiterates his urgent call for the protection of civilians, including humanitarian personnel, and for the provision of essential resources to ensure their survival.<\/p>\n He once again calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.<\/p>\n The ±¬ÁÏÍø stands ready to significantly scale up our humanitarian operations. The time for a ceasefire is now.<\/p>\n On 22 July, the ±¬ÁÏÍø High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker T\u00fcrk issued the following <\/em>
\nContents<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n
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\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/a>I. OCHA: Hundreds of families displaced amid ongoing hostilities in northern Gaza\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>II. ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General is appalled by deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>III. Forever-Occupation, genocide, and profit: Special Rapporteur\u2019s report exposes corporate forces behind destruction of Palestine<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>IV. ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights: Israeli settlers, supported by the army, forcibly displaced Palestinian communities from the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>V. The city of East Jerusalem epitomizes the original example of Israel pushing its settler agenda, says ±¬ÁÏÍø Palestinian Rights Committee Chair<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VI. ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General: \u201cPalestinian suffering has reached new heights and hopes for a just and lasting solution have reached new depths\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VII. Comment by ±¬ÁÏÍø High Commissioner for Human Rights on U.S. sanctions against Francesca Albanese<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VIII. \u201cSilence is not an option\u201d: ±¬ÁÏÍø Special Procedures\u2019 Coordination Committee condemns U.S. sanctions on Francesca Albanese<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>IX. OHCHR: Palestinians in Gaza continue to be killed in hundreds against a looming threat of forcible transfer outside Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>X. OHCHR: Israel must stop killings and home demolitions in occupied West Bank<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XI. ±¬ÁÏÍø Relief Chief warns Security Council: Erosion of rules of war in Gaza demands urgent response<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XII. Children are \u201cbeing killed and maimed as they line up for lifesaving food and medicine\u201d ±¬ÁÏÍøICEF Executive Director\u202fbriefs the ±¬ÁÏÍø Security Council<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XIII. ±¬ÁÏÍøRWA: On proposed amendment to Israeli anti-±¬ÁÏÍøRWA legislation<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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\n<\/a>XIV. ±¬ÁÏÍø expert denounces \u201cgenocidal violence\u201d against women and girls in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XV. ±¬ÁÏÍø experts call for end to anguish of families seeking truth about disappeared loved ones in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XVI. ±¬ÁÏÍø Secretary-General is appalled by the accelerating breakdown of humanitarian conditions in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XVII. ±¬ÁÏÍø Human Rights Chief: Israeli attacks on Deir El Balah add more misery to the suffering of Palestinians<\/strong><\/h2>\n