Today, the UN Security Council held yet another urgent meeting on Gaza. The briefing was prompted by the devastating Israeli attack on the al-Tabeen school in central Gaza on 10 August. Slovenia supported Algeria in calling for the meeting and stressed it was time for a ceasefire to be finally reached, or else for the Council to ensure it finally happens.

The Israeli airstrike on the school compound, which was sheltering several hundred displaced families, killed dozens of Palestinians and wounded many others, among them women and children. “Initial reports suggest that this was one of the deadliest attacks on a school sheltering displaced people since the start of this conflict,” OCHA Director Lisa Doughten said in her briefing to the Council.

Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo added that the war in Gaza has now killed “almost 40,000 Palestinians and injured more than 90,000 others, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Some 10,000 people remain unaccounted for and are thought to be buried under the rubble.”

Slovenia strongly condemned the attack on al-Tabeen school and reiterated its call for full respect of international humanitarian law. Furthermore, Ambassador Samuel Žbogar warned there were “serious claims that Hamas is embedding itself among the civilian population in civilian infrastructure.” On the other hand, a series of military attacks on schools has been witnessed. Ambassador Žbogar called for full respect of Security Council resolution 2601 on protection of education in armed conflict.

Ten months after the start of the war in Gaza, Slovenia is gravely concerned about the threat of further regional escalation. “We call for maximum restraint by all actors in the region to prevent us from going down a road of no return,” underlined Ambassador Žbogar.

Ongoing hostilities point once again to the urgent need for both sides to commit to reaching a ceasefire deal immediately, free the hostages and scale up humanitarian aid to Gaza. “There is no more time to spare. The Council should discuss how to ensure compliance with its resolutions,” the Ambassador told the Council gathering.

Concluding, Slovenia stood firm in its call for a ceasefire to be finally reached, or else for the Security Council to ensure it finally happens through the implementation of its resolutions.

Recent News