Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
France’s top UN envoy, Nicolas de Riviere, on Tuesday criticised the Security Council and General Assembly for their failure to denounce the October 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas and other groups.
“It is unacceptable that the Security Council and the General Assembly have not yet been able to condemn the terrorist acts perpetrated by Hamas and other terrorist groups, on October 7,” Mr de Riviere told the Assembly.
He repeated France’s “unwavering commitment” to Israel's security but said that this does not absolve Israel from the responsibility of adhering to international law.
“Israeli operations [in Gaza] must cease,” Mr de Riviere stressed.
The Gaza crisis, he noted, requires the Security Council to be able to “express clear demands on all aspects of the crisis: humanitarian, security and political”.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas-led militants stormed across its southern border, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250 others, according to Israeli authorities.
More than 100 hostages were released last year in exchange for 240 Palestinians jailed by Israel.
In response, Israel's assaults on Gaza have killed more than 30,600, mainly civilians, local health authorities say.
The nearly five months of fighting has left much of Gaza in ruins and created a worsening humanitarian catastrophe, with many, especially in the devastated northern region, facing starvation.
South Africa’s ambassador to the UN Mathu Joyini asked at what point certain nations in the 193-member General Assembly would finally accept that “far too many innocent lives have been lost”.
“Do some of us want to continue to believe that we need to allow Israel more time to justify its so-called right to defend itself against a population it illegally occupies?” Ms Joyini asked.
Displaced Palestinians seek shelter in Gaza graveyards – video
“There appears to be an Orwellian justification that some are more equal than others, and therefore, some countries are above the law and cannot be sanctioned or stopped from their merciless persecution and genocidal acts.”
Brazil’s UN ambassador Sergio Franca Danese criticised the council for its lack of action on Gaza over claims that advocating a ceasefire would compromise negotiations.
On February 20, the US vetoed a Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire, with Washington envoy Linda Thomas-Greenfield saying the resolution, proposed by Algeria, would hurt negotiations now taking place in Cairo.
“Demanding an immediate, unconditional ceasefire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring about peace,” Ms Thomas-Greenfield said.
Israel and Hamas are under mounting pressure to agree to a ceasefire in Gaza, particularly with Ramadan approaching.
The US, Qatar and Egypt have spent weeks trying to broker an agreement in which Hamas would release up to 40 hostages in return for a six-week ceasefire, the release of Palestinian detainees and a major flow of humanitarian aid to the enclave.
“The council cannot be prevented to meet its responsibilities based on non-fulfilling promises of direct talks,” Mr Danese said.
“Simply awaiting a solution based on direct negotiations, while unceasing ruthless military operations continue to kill unarmed civilians and target protected objects, implies complicity with death and destruction.”
Latest from the Israel-Gaza war – in pictures
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Displaced Palestinians hold a white flag as they pass an Israeli tank position while fleeing the Hamad Town district of Khan Younis. Bloomberg -
A Palestinian woman cuts material to be used for sewing nappies at a workshop in Rafah. AFP -
Smoke rises following an explosion in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel. AP -
Parachutes carrying relief for Palestinians drop from an Egyptian Air Force cargo plane over central Gaza. Bloomberg -
A Palestinian boy who is suffering from malnutrition is treated at a healthcare centre amid widespread hunger. Reuters -
Palestinian children attend an English class in the library of the school housing displaced people in Rafah, the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
An UNRWA-run school housing displaced Palestinians in Rafah. AFP -
Palestinians search for bodies and survivors in the rubble of a residential building destroyed in an Israeli air strike in Rafah. AP -
A wounded Palestinian man who lost his wife and daughter walks past a neighbours' house destroyed by Israeli bombing in Rafah. AFP -
An injured man is rescued from the rubble after an Israeli air strike on the Rafah camp in Gaza. EPA -
Palestinians walk amid the rubble of houses destroyed by the Israeli bombardment of Gaza city. AFP -
Aid is dropped into Gaza from US military aircraft. Reuters -
Palestinians gather at air lorries in Gaza. More than 100 were killed when Israeli troops opened fire. AP -
The sun sets behind destroyed buildings in Gaza. AFP -
A Palestinian man enters a heavily damaged house following an Israeli strike in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
A wounded Palestinian is assisted at the site of an Israeli strike in Deir Al Balah, in the central Gaza Strip. Reuters -
Palestinians gather in the hope of getting bags of flour carried by air lorries near an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza city, as the enclave's residents face crisis levels of hunger. Reuters -
Palestinian children wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues in Gaza. Reuters -
A displaced Palestinian child holds a crying baby in a camp in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters
