Israel’s brutal military offensive in the Gaza Strip continues into fourth month, leading to catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the Palestinian territory. Despite diplomatic efforts and calls for a ceasefire, the global community has so far collectively failed to stop this war and ensure delivery of enough humanitarian assistance for over 2 million residents of Gaza. The Security Council, United Nations’ top body responsible for maintaining global peace and security, has taken up the issue of Gaza war multiple times but has unfortunately been unable to reach a decision, for the want of consensus among its five permanent members.
This week, the US once again vetoed a widely supported UN resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. The vote in the 15-member Security Council was 13-1 with the UK abstaining, reflecting the strong support from countries around the globe for ending the war. It was the third US veto of a Security Council resolution demanding a cease-fire in Gaza. The veto provoked criticism from countries including China, Russia, France and others.
Qatar also expressed its deep regret over the obstruction of the draft resolution submitted by Algeria on behalf of the Arab Group to the Security Council. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the ongoing aggression on Gaza has repeatedly exposed double standards and varying international community stances towards the systematic war crimes committed by Israeli forces against the Palestinian people, especially children and women.
For its part, Qatar has been making unrelenting efforts to help broker a ceasefire and deliver humanitarian aid. Over the past four month, Qatar has been the most vocal advocate of a humanitarian pause in fighting and release of all civilian detainees. Under an initiative by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Qatar is evacuating 1,500 injured Palestinians from Gaza for treatment inside Qatar. At the same time, Doha has sent 79 flights carrying humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza.
Qatar has said it will continue its efforts in cooperation with regional and international partners to achieve an immediate ceasefire, protect civilians, and facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid without obstacles to all areas of the strip, and will work to prevent the expansion of the war in the region.
With more than 29,000 people dead and tens of thousands injured and missing, the world needs to find a way to stop this war. The regional and global powers must agree and help implement an immediate ceasefire to save hundreds of thousands of civilians caught in this conflict.
