Palestinian UN ambassador pleads for Gaza aid deaths condemnation

On Thursday, the Palestinian envoy to the UN begged the Security Council to denounce the deaths of several dozen people in Gaza as a result of Israeli soldiers opening fire on Palestinians who were rushing to receive food assistance.

“The Security Council should say enough is enough,” Riyad Mansour told reporters.

Mansour’s remarks followed an erratic skirmish in which Israeli soldiers opened fire on Palestinians attempting to obtain food assistance, resulting in 112 fatalities and 760 injuries, according to the health ministry in the zone controlled by Hamas.

“This outrageous massacre is a testimony to the fact that as long as the Security Council is paralyzed and vetoes casted, then it is costing the Palestinian people their lives,” he said.

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As one of the five permanent members of the 15-member council, the United States – Israel’s main backer – possesses a veto that it has used three times to prevent the organisation from calling for an immediate ceasefire in Palestinian territory.

Mansour stated that he had already met with Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US Ambassador to the UN.

“I implored her that the Security Council has to produce a product of condemning this killing and to go after those responsible for this massacre,” he said.

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If the Security Council has “a spine and determination to put an end to these massacres from happening all over again, what we need is a ceasefire,” Mansour said.

The Security Council met Thursday afternoon behind closed doors to discuss the morning’s events in northern Gaza – a meeting that came at Algeria’s request.

“We are all deeply alarmed and saddened by the death of over a hundred Palestinians and many more wounded earlier today in northern Gaza,” US deputy ambassador to the UN Robert Wood said before entering the meeting, calling it a “tragic day.”

Thursday’s incident added to a Palestinian death toll which the Gaza health ministry said had topped 30,000, mainly women and children.

The war began on October 7 with an unprecedented Hamas attack on southern Israel that resulted in the deaths of around 1,160 people, mostly civilians, Israeli figures show.

Militants also took about 250 hostages, 130 of whom remain in Gaza, including 31 Israel says are presumed dead.