Awad Rjoob, Ali Semerci
24 December 2023•Update: 25 December 2023
RAMALLAH, Palestine
Palestine accused the Israeli government on Saturday of attempting to obstruct the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2720 concerning the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Israel had turned the Gaza Strip into a "mass grave for civilians."
It condemned Israel's escalation of violence and genocide against Palestinian civilians, "in the strongest terms".
The statement said that Israel's escalation of tension in the region is "defiance to the international public," indicating that “Israel's intensification of attacks across all regions from the northern to the southern Gaza Strip, destruction of all settlement squares, and targeting of all components of human life in the northern Gaza Strip” clearly is a demonstration of that fact.
It underscored that Israel, through its policies, was actively attempting to obstruct the implementation of the Security Council’s resolution.
The statement called for intensified international efforts within the Security Council to bring an end to the war and an immediate cease-fire.
It also warned that Israel's transformation of the entire Gaza Strip into a mass grave for the dead and living was imminent.
UN Security Council's resolution on aid for Gaza
A draft resolution that urged urgent action for uninterrupted and secure access to expanded humanitarian aid in Gaza was adopted Friday by the Security Council after four postponements.
The resolution received 13 "Yes" votes from the 15-member Council, with the US and Russia abstaining.
Prior to the vote, the US vetoed a proposed amendment by Russia that called for an immediate cessation of hostilities to ensure uninterrupted and secure access to humanitarian aid in Gaza.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry regarded the resolution as a belated but significant step toward ending attacks in Gaza.
*Writing by Esra Tekin
