Statement by Representative of Slovenia to the UN Security Council Ambassador Samuel Žbogar at the briefing on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question

Thank you very much, Mr. President.

I also want to thank the briefers. I want to thank Special Coordinator Wennesland and I want to thank Dr. Baxter of Save the Children, especially for her very chilling briefing. I think that we are not humans if such briefings don’t touch us.

Mr. President,

An ancient saying confirms that the first victim of war is the truth. But the biggest victims of war in Gaza will surely be children.

The children of Gaza have gone through indescribable suffering being deprived of adequate nutrition. They face a cycle of endless violence and repetitive displacement. Without access to hospital care and psychological support. Over 20.000 children in Gaza are missing: lost, disappeared, detained or buried. They have been orphaned, maimed and killed at an unprecedented rate.

Today, childhood in Gaza is a synonym for trauma. As a parent myself, I cannot imagine the suffering of parents not being able to provide their children a safe and carefree childhood and not being able to shelter them from this trauma.

In light of this immense suffering, Slovenia supports the Secretary-General’s appeal for a polio pause. As underlined by WHO, UNICEF and UNRWA, a humanitarian pause is crucial to allow for two rounds of vaccination campaigns to take place. These days of tranquility would enable children and families to reach health facilities and UN entities to carry out outreach. Successful campaigns will also require sufficient fuel, functional telecommunications networks and cash. The requests of the health community are clear and we therefore repeat our call for a humanitarian pause. This should also be the moment to flood Gaza with humanitarian aid and to carry out much-needed repairs to the health, water and sanitation systems.

The lack of safe drinking water is one of the biggest dangers caused by the destruction of critical infrastructure. Lack of clean water for adequate personal hygiene contributes to the risk of disease and infection, especially among women and children. It is a reality we knew was coming.

Mr. President,

A sobering milestone was reached last week: 40.000 fatalities of the war in Gaza. In recent days we witnessed one of the biggest evacuation orders to date, further shrinking so-called humanitarian zones for civilians. And we heard today from both briefers that there is no safe place in Gaza. While the humanitarian community continues to face a severely challenging environment, including the breakdown of law and order, we see an increase in denied humanitarian assistance missions and a decline in the volume of aid picked up.

We’re talking about another cycle of civilian suffering. To stop it, a lasting ceasefire must be reached. We once again express our full support to the negotiators, Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to finalize the deal during the Cairo-round of negotiations in the coming days or as my US colleague said, to finish it now. But definitely within the next few days. Slovenia, as a Security Council member, stands ready to support the process with meaningful action in the Council.

Mr. President,

Not many reasons for optimism were outlined in Mr. Wennesland’s briefing.

Negative trends cannot be prevented with further violence. We strongly condemn the latest suicide attack carried out by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Tel Aviv.

Negative trends will not be stopped by further settlements. We call on Israel to reverse their settlement policy, including the plans for the first new West Bank settlement since 2017. Slovenia calls on Israel to comply with its duties and obligations under international law as set out by the International Court of Justice in its provisional measures and in its advisory opinion, as well as in the relevant Security Council resolutions. We strongly condemn settler violence.

Negative trends will not cease with inflammatory rhetoric and provocations, including the latest visit to Al Aqsa mosque. We condemn this violation of the holy sites status quo.

And lastly, negative trends cannot be addressed without steps towards the two state solution. They must be done on the ground, including through addressing the liquidity crisis in Palestine and strong support to the Palestinian Authority. They must also be done in this Council, with future-oriented discussions and decisive actions without delay.

Mr. President,

The region is on a brink, including along the Blue Line, in the Red Sea and elsewhere in the region. We call for maximum restraint by all actors, refraining from further attacks and threatening rhetoric.

Dr. Baxter concluded her statement with “we are in your hands” and indeed the whole international community is watching us, is watching the Council. At least we, Slovenia, feel this pressure and we feel the duty and responsibility to do something, to act within the authority of this Council.

Thank you.

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