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Statement at UNSC quarterly open debate on the Middle East

Statement by Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the United Nations Samuel Žbogar at UNSC quarterly open debate on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question

Thank you very much, Mr. President, thank you Deputy Prime Minister Dar. I thank Assistant Secretary-General Khiari for his briefing.

Mr. President,

Slovenia firmly believes that peace is a choice. The only path to lasting peace in the Middle East is for military options to give way to diplomatic ones. And strategy of zero sum game and terror are replaced by acceptance of a shared future.

Let me make three points today.

Firstly, we remain heartbroken about the situation in Gaza. We reiterate our call for an immediate ceasefire. We demand the release of all hostages.

We call for humanitarian aid to be delivered at scale across the Gaza strip. The UN and its agencies are the only one able of this humongous task. They have proven that they can deliver if not prevented. The scale of acute food insecurity, including starvation, is intolerable. Over 100 humanitarian organisations are sounding the alarm as mass starvation spreads across Gaza and their colleagues and those they serve are wasting away.

Civilians are not starving. They are being starved. By Israel. As a weapon of war.

We will closely follow the implementation of the EU-Israel deal. We remain cautious as there is no real change on the ground yet. Only significant improvement of humanitarian situation will be the proof of Israel’s commitment.

Palestinian civilians continue to be killed while waiting for water and aid, or seeking shelter—even in schools and religious sites. We resolutely condemn the attack on the Holy Family Church.

UN and humanitarian workers continue to work in an unacceptably perilous security environment and under intolerable operational challenges. They continue to be killed with impunity. We hear about investigations of incidents but we never learn about their results.  We condemn the latest attack on WHO facilities and staff, and call for release of detained staff member. We are appalled by the continuation of the mass displacement orders.

Mr. President,

It started with attacks on UNRWA, continued on the Secretary-General and now spreading to USG Fletcher and OCHA. What we heard today from Israel is a determination to prevent the UN and its humanitarian arm to help starving civilians in occupied territories. Because as my colleague from Algeria said, they tell the truth. Because of humanity that they serve and they represent. What I hope Israel heard today from Council members and will hear from great majority of UN Member States later on, is our determination not to allow dismantlement of the system we jointly built after tragedies of the Second World War, and which is representing a face of humanity to millions of civilians across the world.

Secondly, we must not let Gaza overshadow the situation in the West Bank. There are unprecedented accounts of killings, demolitions, destruction, displacement, restrictions. Slovenia strongly opposes the revival of the E1 settlement plan and calls on Israel to cease activities that directly contradict the ICJ Advisory Opinion.

Additional restrictions are being considered on UNRWA – an agency critical to the stability of all its areas of operation, also in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Maximum pressure is being exerted on the Palestinian Authority. In response to these acts and violations, Slovenia last week adopted further bilateral measures.

Thirdly, despite some reasons for optimism, the regional situation remains fragile, and the future uncertain. The resumption of Houthi attacks in the Red Sea have potentially dire security, humanitarian, environmental and commercial consequences, in Yemen and beyond.

We reiterate our concern over the escalation of violence in Syria and renew our call for the protection of civilians and a full cessation of all violence across the country. We call on Israel to cease its attacks on Syria and adhere to the 1974 Disengagement Agreement. We welcome the progress seen in Lebanon in recent months. While challenges persist, the country needs continued support from the international community, including through the renewal of the UNIFIL mandate. We underline the need to ensure safety and security and respect the freedom of movement of peacekeepers.

Mr. President,

A region marked by instability and conflict needs reasons for optimism. It needs the status quo of past decades to be broken. As stressed so many times before, it needs the international law, international humanitarian law and human rights law to be fully respected. We welcome the reconvening of the conference on two-state solution next week and reiterate our full support. We call for clear actions and clear commitments. Only through a two-state solution, where two democratic States, Israel and Palestine, accept to live side by side, can the long-lasting peace in the region become a reality.

Thank you.

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7 October 2025 – Statement by Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the United Nations, Samuel Žbogar, at the UNSC meeting on the cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations in maintaining international peace and security

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