{"id":317873,"date":"2026-03-27T10:20:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T14:20:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?post_type=document&p=317873"},"modified":"2026-05-08T10:55:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:55:25","slug":"gaza-crisis-west-bank-settler-violence-unsustainable-experts-tell-security-council-as-speakers-demand-respect-for-resolution-2334-2016","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/gaza-crisis-west-bank-settler-violence-unsustainable-experts-tell-security-council-as-speakers-demand-respect-for-resolution-2334-2016\/","title":{"rendered":"Gaza crisis, West Bank settler violence \u2018unsustainable\u2019, experts tell Security Council, as speakers demand respect for resolution 2334 (2016)"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

24 March 2026<\/p>\n

10125th Meeting (PM)<\/p>\n

SC\/16321<\/p>\n

Updating the Security Council on the implementation of two separate resolutions concerning the Israel-Palestine conflict, senior officials in the region underscored that the status quo, from the crisis in Gaza to the settler violence in the West Bank, is not sustainable.<\/p>\n

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Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, focused on resolution 2334 (2016)<\/a>, which demanded that Israel cease all settlement activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, while\u00a0Nickolay Mladenov, High Representative for Gaza on the Board of Peace, outlined the implementation of resolution 2803 (2025)<\/a>, which endorsed the United States\u2019 \u201cComprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict\u201d and welcomed the establishment of the Board.<\/p>\n

\u2018Alarming\u2019 Settlement Expansion, Settler Violence in West Bank<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Mr. Alakbarov outlined the alarming increase in settlements and settler violence in the occupied West Bank.\u00a0During the reporting period \u2014 3\u00a0December\u00a02025 to 13\u00a0March\u00a02026 \u2014 Israeli authorities advanced or approved over 6,000 housing units, and approved measures to expand their civil authority in the occupied West Bank.\u00a0 Citing the lack of Israeli-issued building permits \u2014 which are almost impossible for Palestinians to obtain \u2014 they \u201cdemolished, seized or forced people to demolish\u201d 429 structures, displacing 575 persons, including 290 children and 150 women.<\/p>\n

He also noted evictions of Palestinians from their homes in occupied East Jerusalem and daily settler-related attacks \u2014 often in the presence of Israeli forces. \u00a0Thirty-two Palestinians, including seven children, were killed in such incidents, he said, detailing a 16\u00a0December incident in which \u201can Israeli settler reportedly shot and killed an 18-year-old Palestinian near Tuqu\u2019, Bethlehem, during the funeral procession for a 16-year-old Palestinian boy shot and killed by Israeli forces on 15\u00a0December\u201d. \u00a0According to Israeli sources, two Israeli civilians, including one woman, were killed by armed Palestinians during the same reporting period.<\/p>\n

Hamas Must Disarm<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Mr. Mladenov, who focused on Gaza, said: \u00a0\u201cI want to speak very plainly about what brought us here.\u201d \u00a0The purpose of the United States-led plan is to prevent the repetition of both Hamas\u2019 devastating 7\u00a0October\u00a02023 attack on Israel and the military campaign in Gaza that caused immense destruction, he said. \u00a0The transition in Gaza must address the lack of a political resolution of the Palestinian question and Hamas\u2019 20 years of militant control of the Strip, he added.<\/p>\n

He welcomed the ceasefire and the establishment of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza. \u00a0\u201cPerhaps the most significant development\u201d has been the development of a comprehensive framework for the decommissioning and reintegration of armed groups in Gaza, he said, adding: \u00a0\u201cThe framework exists, it has been endorsed by all mediators, it has been presented to the parties and the engagement on it is very serious\u201d. \u00a0Council members must support the decommissioning of weapons in Gaza and urge all Palestinian factions to accept this. \u00a0The choice is between \u201ca renewed war, or a new beginning; the status quo, or a better future\u201d; he said. \u00a0\u201cThere is no third option.\u201d<\/p>\n

Palestinian Land \u2018Not for Sale\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In turn, the observer for the State of Palestine underscored that the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, constitute a single territorial unit. \u00a0\u201cIt is Palestinian land.\u00a0 It is not for sale.\u201d \u00a0He recounted a recent incident in which Israeli soldiers fired between 50 and 70 rounds at a Palestinian family driving to Nablus for Eid preparations \u2014 killing four members.\u00a0 Not a single Israeli soldier was summoned for interrogation.\u00a0This is part of a pattern of not just impunity but \u201crewarding criminality\u201d, he said.\u00a0 Officers from the same unit were filmed last November executing two Palestinians in Jenin. \u00a0The following day, Israel\u2019s Minister for National Security announced that he would promote the unit\u2019s commander.<\/p>\n

Force against Iran, \u2018Tremendous\u2019 Progress in Gaza<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cMembers of this Council \u2014 your capitals are within reach\u201d of Iran\u2019s missiles, Israel\u2019s delegate said. \u00a0\u201cWe tried diplomacy for years\u201d, but the regime exploited it, deceiving the international community about its true nuclear intentions, he said, underscoring that the cost of Israel\u2019s operation against Iran is a necessary one.\u00a0However, \u201cthe fact that we are acting forcefully against Iran and Hizbullah does not mean we are any less focused on Gaza,\u201d he added. \u00a0Voicing support for President Trump\u2019s 20-point peace plan and resolution 2803 (2025), he stressed that Israel cannot move forward unless Hamas is disarmed.<\/p>\n

Echoing that, the representative of United States said the Palestinians of Gaza must be free from the butchers who oppressed them \u2014 the international community must pressure Hamas to disarm. \u00a0There is substantial progress in the implementation of resolution 2803 (2025), he said, adding that over the last five months, \u201chumanitarian assistance has surged into Gaza\u201d, every Israeli hostage has returned home, and \u201cHamas no longer holds hostages in its terror tunnels\u201d. \u00a0During the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, several countries pledged more than $7\u00a0billion in support, he said, adding: \u00a0\u201cThis is real money, real effort towards a better life for Gazans.\u201d \u00a0Compared to six months ago, there has been tremendous progress, he said, and \u201cGaza can become a destination for investment\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u2018Gaza is bleeding\u2019 \u2014 Calls to End \u2018Genocidal\u2019 Occupation, Realize Palestinian Self-Determination<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Other speakers were less optimistic.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is absurd to think that there can be a fair, sustainable peace while the genocidal project continues,\u201d Colombia\u2019s delegate said. \u00a0\u201cPalestinians have become strangers on their own land,\u201d Algeria\u2019s delegate, speaking for the Arab Group, lamented. \u00a0Gaza is bleeding openly and the hope generated by the ceasefire is dwindling. \u00a0In Jerusalem, Israeli authorities have closed off the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre \u2014 even in the darkest moments of history, worshipping there was a right, he pointed out.<\/p>\n

Several speakers reaffirmed the Palestinian right to self-determination as they condemned the closure of holy sites, the continued land confiscations, home demolitions and forced displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank.\u00a0 \u201cWhat we are witnessing is no longer a matter of isolated incidents, but organized, coordinated attacks against the Palestinian population [as a result of] an occupation system that has been allowed to operate with impunity,\u201d Pakistan\u2019s delegate pointed out.<\/p>\n

Somalia\u2019s delegate said Israel\u2019s policies are aimed at entrenching a de facto annexation and expanding administrative control over lands in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, while\u00a0the representative of Panama warned that the violence, displacement and demolition in the West Bank risk the erosion of \u201cthe minimum conditions necessary to move towards a fair, dignified and sustainable solution\u201d.<\/p>\n

The global community must not let a two-State solution slip beyond reach, speakers stressed.\u00a0 \u201cPeace is rarely lost in a single moment,\u201d Denmark\u2019s delegate reflected.\u00a0 \u201cIt erodes slowly, day by day, settlement by settlement.\u201d\u00a0 Latvia\u2019s delegate also called for\u00a0accountability for Israeli settler attacks, while condemning Iran for fueling regional violence with backing from the Russian Federation.<\/p>\n

Bahrain\u2019s delegate noted that Muslims and Christians are celebrating holy days this month and condemned the closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli authorities. \u00a0Despite Iran\u2019s attacks, his country is actively contributing to peace in the region, including as a member of the newly founded Board of Peace.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s representative stressed that any new political arrangements must fully respect the principle of \u201cPalestinians governing Palestine\u201d and rejected any unilateral initiatives. \u00a0The representative of Greece was among the many speakers who called for support for the Palestinian Authority and warned that its fiscal collapse \u201cmust be avoided at all costs\u201d.\u00a0 \u201cGaza and the West Bank are a single, indivisible territorial unit,\u201d she stressed.<\/p>\n

Path to Stability: \u00a0Renewed Backing for Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA, Palestinian Authority<\/strong><\/h3>\n

France\u2019s delegate called on Hamas to accept the proposed sequenced plan: \u00a0Any other choice would be suicidal for Palestine and the Palestinians, he said. \u00a0He also highlighted the weakening of the Palestinian Authority, particularly due to Israel\u2019s \u201cunjustifiable refusal to provide tax income\u201d.\u00a0 This harms regional stability, Israel\u2019s own security and the Palestinian Authority\u2019s ability to provide essential service, he noted. \u00a0The representative of the\u00a0United Kingdom, calling for\u00a0the implementation of Phase\u00a02 of the ceasefire, underscored: \u00a0\u201cHamas has no future in the governance of Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was also among those speakers who stressed that the\u00a0United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA) must be able to operate unimpeded in Gaza. \u00a0The Democratic Republic of the Congo\u2019s delegate added that the Agency\u2019s work is essential in providing life-saving assistance, particularly in the areas of health, education and emergency aid. \u00a0The representative of the Russian Federation said that, while the international community\u2019s attention is diverted to Iran, the Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem posted a video clip \u2014 against the backdrop of a demolished Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA building \u2014 directly calling for the murder of all Agency staff.\u00a0 Such statements are not an exception; rather, this is just one example of \u201can aggressive and targeted campaign deployed by Israel against Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

Liberia\u2019s delegate told the Council: \u00a0\u201cOur tenure here is only for two years \u2014 this conflict should not outdate us in its current state and form.\u201d\u00a0 Reflecting on his own country\u2019s journey, he added: \u00a0\u201cWe sit around this table as proof that recovery is possible when the world refuses to look away.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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