Human Dignity Under Strain: The Humanitarian and Human Rights Consequences in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Good morning, everyone, Excellencies, distinguished speakers, ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, it is my privilege to welcome you to today's briefing on Human Dignity Under Strain: The Humanitarian and Human Rights Consequences in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. For those watching us on UN Web TV from around the world, my name is Nazira binti Osman. I am the Vice Chair of the UN Palestinian Rights Committee and the Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations in New York. On behalf of the Committee, let me express our appreciation to all of you for joining us today. We are pleased to have with us today Ms. Francesca Albanese. United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Ms. Farida Shahid, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Mr. Surya Deva, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to development, as well as Mr. Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory. I thank our distinguished briefers for joining us today, and I look forward to a frank and meaningful discussion. So we will begin with briefings by our speakers, to be followed by a Q&A session, and then concluding remarks by Minister Riad Mansour, the Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in New York. Let us now start with our first briefer, UN Special Rapporteur Ms. Francesca Albanese. So since May 2022, Ms. Albanese has served as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories since 1967. In her recent reports to the Human Rights Council, Special Rapporteur Albanese examined allegations of systematic torture and ill-treatment of Palestinians since October 2023 and placed them within the broader context of grave violations of international law. The most recent report argues that the suppression of Palestinian journalists, Israeli propaganda and censorship, and international media bias have enabled atrocities and obstructed accountability through a process termed “mediacity”. She has also drawn attention to the impact of expanding movement restrictions in the occupied West Bank, restrictions that affect access to healthcare, education, employment, and family life. It is unfortunate that Ms. Albanese is unable to be here with us in person due to unjust sanctions imposed on her. Nevertheless, we are grateful that she is able to join us online today. Ms. Albanese, you have the floor.

Ms. Vice Chair, Excellencies, colleagues and friends, thank you, Ambassador Osman, and thank you.

To the committee for convening this briefing.

I also like to salute Ambassador Mansoor. I'm glad to be joined by my fellow mandate holders and by the chair of the Commission of Inquiry.

I regret that I can only address you remotely, indeed, that the UN-appointed expert cannot enter the city where the United Nations sits because of sanctions against her for doing Her job says something about the state of the United Nations, our system, and multilateralism. Earlier this week, I presented my report, my ninth report, to the Third Committee. It's titled "Truth Under the Rubble: Media in the Time of Genocide." The report shows that the destruction of truth has become part of the destruction of a people. the destruction of a people that I have documented for more than three years and that we should have seen coming, as the Palestinians themselves did. But we didn't believe them, or perhaps we lacked the courage to believe what they've been telling us through and through. Since October 2023, Israel has killed nearly 300 journalists and media workers in Gaza. Among them are camera operators struck in double tap attacks, and reporters labeled terrorists after their deaths or undisclosed or discredited evidence. Hundreds of their relatives have been killed as well. Media offices and most of Gaza's telecommunication infrastructure have been destroyed, and foreign journalists have been barred from the territory for three years. Inside Israel, segments of the media have normalized the dehumanization and at times explicitly called for Gaza's annihilation. These calls continue despite a binding order of the International Court of Justice to prevent and punish incitement to genocide. Abroad, influential outlets and digital platforms have too often reproduced the perpetrator's narrative. They've censored Palestinian voices, and in some cases, they've taken money to deny even a famine.

And this is what I.

Called in my last report, media side. When witnesses are eliminated and evidence is erased, the crime is not only committed, it is concealed, and impunity becomes part of the plan. But this is part and parcel of a bigger genocidal scheme. Since October 2023, more than 74,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, and over 175,000 injured, according to the latest available figures. More than 21,000 of these were children.

More than 58,000 children have lost one or both parents, and.

Thousands of them have survived only to face a lifetime altered by injury. Gaza has the highest number of child amputees per capita in the world. More than 5,000 amputations have been recorded, around one in five involving a child, many carried out without anesthesia. Many of the tens of thousands of survivors face permanent disabilities, while the destruction of health care and rehabilitation services denies them the care, prosthetics, and support they urgently need. I wish I could tell you the so-called ceasefire had brought relief. It does not. Since it was announced a year ago, more than 1,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. And Israeli attacks have continued on an almost everyday basis. This past week alone, children were killed, a university campus was struck twice, and tent camps were set ablaze. Bakeries are now closed because flour is blocked. Hospital generators are running out of fuel again. Families shelter in rainwater pits and buildings on the verge of collapse as winter approaches again. In the West Bank, the pattern of erasure is also accelerating, because after the attack at Tiberia checkpoints on 23 October, the Prime Minister of Israel, ICC, wanted to destroy the attackers' neighborhood, to change it completely, and to evacuate its residents. Within days, thousands of Palestinians were forcibly displaced from Hebron and hundreds of homes were raided. Dozens of people were detained. The entire communities in Masafra and Yatta were sealed off, and the whole territory has been locked down. This is collective punishment. prohibited by the Fourth Geneva Convention, unfolding alongside a record olive harvest season of settler violence, more than 270 attacks in less than two months, often in the presence of soldiers. All these while land is declared state land and new settlement tenders are issued. But What I find infuriating of all these excellencies, that what we are witnessing has a name, and those who name it are no longer isolated voices. In January 2024, the International Court of Justice found the right of the Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from genocide plausible and at the real and imminent risk, and ordered Israel to prevent genocidal act. In July 2024, the court found Israel's continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory totally unlawful and to be ended as rapidly as possible and unconditionally. It also found a breach of the prohibition of racial segregation and apartheid. Israeli historians and Holocaust scholars, among whom Razi Gal, Amos Goldberg, Omar Bartov, reached the conclusion of genocide, and so did Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Association of Genocide Scholars, Israeli organizations, B'Tselem, Physicians for Human Rights. And in September 2025, the independent International Commission of Inquiry, whose chair is with us today, concluded that genocide is being committed in Gaza. So the fact had been established, and the law has been applied under the Genocide Convention. every state's duty to prevent arose once a serious risk of genocide became known. After the court's order of January 2024, no state could claim ignorance. And so, the international community has yet to mobilize in proportion to these findings. Rather, the contrary is true, in fact.

Arms continue to flow.

Trade continues, especially of the oil and gas which is fueling occupation, apartheid, colonization, and genocide. And so do investment, diplomatic cover, and the welcoming of individuals subject to arrest warrants of the International Criminal Court, to the very same place where I, a UN Special Rapporteur, am prohibited to enter. The state able to make a difference have offered statements instead of measures, and recognition of Palestine without action to end the occupation that makes a Palestinian state impossible. Mr. Chair, this brings me to my central message. I fear that many in the UN underestimate what is at stake. Nowhere is the failure clearer than in the abandonment of Angua. The agency that is the lifeline of millions of Palestine refugees and the backbone of humanitarian response in Gaza, it has been legislated against by Israel, its premises attacked, and hundreds of its staff killed. It has been defamed through the allegations of systemic infiltration that were amplified by media and never substantiated. Several donors suspended funding on that basis and plunged the agency into crisis. The International Court of Justice itself has since confirmed apartheid Israel's obligation to facilitate the work of UNRWA. And still, the defense of a UN body by its own member states has been timid at best. The United Nations was built on the ashes of two world wars and one of the worst genocides in human history. The Genocide Convention was adopted the day before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The convention was promised that the world would never again stand by while a people was destroyed, the declaration that every human being's dignity would be protected. If these promises fail here in the most documented genocide in history, under the eyes of the court, the commission, the treaty body, special procedures, the damage will not stay in Palestine. Every perpetrator everywhere will draw the lesson that the law is optional and that its institution can be starved, smeared, and sanctioned into silence. Institutions rarely collapse in a single moment. They hollow out, failure after unanswered failure, until no one believes them anymore. Gaza might be the breaking point, not because the United Nations lacks the tools, but because its members chose not to use them. It is not too late.

Implement the court's orders and the General Assembly's resolution, suspend arms transfer and trade that sustain unlawful.

Occupation and genocide, fund and protect UNRWA, protect the journalists, preserve the record, because accountability depends on it. Do not forget the people of Palestine. History will ask what each of us did. Let our answer not be that we just watched.

Thank you.

Ms. Albaneese, I thank you for your important and very frank briefing on the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory. Your work continues to shed light. on the realities on the ground and contributes meaningfully to the international efforts aimed at upholding international law and ensuring respect for the rights and dignity of the Palestinian people. The Committee greatly appreciates your unwavering commitment, professionalism, tireless efforts in the pursuit of justice, accountability, and the protection of human rights. I will now give the floor to our next briefer, Ms. Farida Shahid, who has been the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education since August 2022. Special Rapporteur Shahid has emphasized that the right to education is not merely about access to a classroom. It requires an educational environment in which children can learn, develop, and participate meaningfully. Her recent work reminds us how fragile that right becomes when schools, teachers, and students are placed under sustained pressure. Ms. Shahid, the floor is yours.

Thank you. Madam Chair, Excellencies, colleagues, and friends, I thank you for this opportunity. Education is an inalienable human right, regardless of the circumstances, location, and identity of the learners. Today, the scale of destruction, the displacement, school closures, restrictions on movement mean that the Palestinian youth and children stand dispossessed of this fundamental right to learn, to think, to express their opinion freely. The right to education, which is a gateway to so many other rights, is protected under both international human rights law and international humanitarian law, and it remains fully applicable during armed conflict. Schools as civilian objects, students and staff as civilians are expressly protected, and Israel has obligations under international law to ensure the right in the occupied Palestinian territory. Instead, what we have seen and we continue to witness is scholasticide, the systemic and systematic obliteration of education, which has been horrendous in Gaza. 98% of the schools and all 13 universities have been destroyed. The arrest, detention, and killings of teachers, students, and staff is appalling. Almost 21,000 Palestinian students have been killed. a classroom of children every day during the war on Gaza. At least 173 have been killed in the West Bank. Almost 170,000 have been injured. More than a thousand teachers, lecturers, administrative staff members have been killed across the territories. Of the 394 UNRWA staff who have been killed in Gaza, 259, that's the vast majority, were either providing or supporting education. And it hasn't ended, as we just heard from the Special Rapporteur Francesco. Since the so-called ceasefire, one child has been killed at least every day. Hundreds have been wounded. Virtually all under five children in Gaza are malnourished. Nearly one in three go without food for more than 24 hours or more, and food deprivation amongst young children leads to wasting and stunting, which in turn causes irreparable physical and cognitive impairments, impacting an entire generation of students in their learning. We now have the World Food Program warning us that with its reduced funds, there will be half a million more people will not be provided with food in Palestine. The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry investigating attacks on education, facilities, religious and cultural sites has also concluded that the Israeli attacks amount to war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination. Scholasticide is multigenerational. It aims to dismantle the very foundation of Palestinian society, erase their history, and destroy a sense of collective self. This is why, apart from all the schools and universities that were attacked and destroyed, 13 libraries, and the central archives of Gaza with 150 years of history, 195 heritage sites, 227 mosques, three churches at least, were destroyed or targeted. For when education is destroyed, so too are the hopes and dreams of the people. Education's not just about accumulating skills, and certainly not about market skills. It's a means of developing critical thinking and a sense of who you are. And in conflict, it is a lifeline, and it provides children and youth with a sense of normalcy when everything else is chaotic and a trauma. Over 830,000 children in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have returned to school amidst security threats. Students have told me, we live in fear from one day to the next at all times of the day. Fears of arrest, beatings, and imprisonment. And I've written on this report on safety and education and also a report on education conflict situations. You cannot learn if you do not feel safe and are not safe in the teaching environment. Last September, 10 out of 48 schools were demolished in East Jerusalem. Some schools were closed or some had to close as they failed to get licenses, which are often conditional on curriculum correction, which really means deleting references to Palestinian history and culture. Students studying the Palestinian curricula say, "We're scared to take our schoolbooks with us." Because children and their fathers are fined for having Palestinian books, especially post 2023. And unique to Jerusalem is students under house arrest. In the West Bank, the presence of military near schools and at checkpoints often leads to intimidation of those who are trying to access schools and denial of access. This heightens distress and insecurity, and stops students and teachers and staff from reaching schools. In the first half of the year, there were 224 security incidents, which affected 152 schools, 20,450 students, and at least 859 educational personnel.

21% of all the security breaches were due to settler violence, which we see continues to spiral out of control and has the complicity of the Israeli security forces who are seen on television and elsewhere standing by or helping. Settler violence has also displaced at least 1,700 children from school. Military incursions into the West Bank educational facilities, including UNRWA schools, disrupts learning and exposes children as young as six to violence, tear gas, injury, and lasting trauma. Continued military operations prevent students from Jenin and Nour Shams camps in the north, then West Bank, returning to regular schools. The psychological and physical damage is overwhelming. As you just heard, Gaza is home to the highest number of per capita child amputees in the world. The trauma of bombs, bereavement, violence, and fear will plague children throughout their lives. In Gaza, the trauma includes amputations without anesthesia, as one Palestinian father saying, "Seeing things children should never see, dismembered limbs and decomposing bodies." Students tell me, "Our childhood has been stolen." On turning 15, a girl said that she felt she turned 40 because she had to look after the injured, find water and food for herself and the family to survive. So I'm always deeply touched by pictures that I still continue to see of children scrambling over rubble, determined to get to school despite all the challenges. Students from Gaza wanting to study abroad have also faced hugely complex It's restrictive multi-layered processes for exit permits, which are controlled by the Israeli military. Many with international admissions and scholarships cannot proceed abroad. Visas, too, are an issue, as we saw in October. 55 scholars admitted in Irish universities were denied visa. Very few have managed to actually proceed abroad. And the role of UNRWA is absolutely critical. It reaches over 100,000 children in temporary learning spaces, 275 remotely, thousands, sorry, 275,000 remotely. More than 1.1 million children in Gaza need mental health and psychosocial support, and UNRWA has provided this for half a million. And it's supporting some 10,000 unaccompanied, separated, and vulnerable children, including 3,000 plus children with disabilities. But the drone strikes and gunfire in or near learning spaces is taking place in the learning spaces, in tents and windowless buildings have injured children and parents, increased insecurity, leading to more and more parents withdrawing their children. The international community has an absolute responsibility to end the school hostage site, restore childhoods, and ensure the right to education in the OPT, securing a lasting end to hostilities is vital and a precondition for so much else. The longer children are out of school, the more difficult it is to catch up, and the higher the risk of child labor, early marriages, and recruitment by armed groups. Special Rapporteurs have repeatedly pointed out the numerous ways in which Israel is violating both international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and states should consider measures to ensure that Israel complies with its obligations under these laws. The right to education must be protected as a lifeline, rebuilding must be supported, psychosocial Support must be ensured for both teachers as well as learners, prioritizing the most vulnerable. And there is also the question of physical rehabilitation, especially for child amputees and prosthetics. Also for children, please remember, it's a long process continuously which has to be changed. They have to be mentored through as their bodies grow. This has to be changed. The funding needed must be robust, predictable, flexible, and multi-year. UNRWA's critical role must be preserved, and the legal bans and restrictions must be overturned. So, coordinated sustainable recovery needs strengthened regional partnerships and national systems, and I think bringing together UNRWA with the ministries of education, Palestinian organizations, UN partners, donors, and communities is essential. Otherwise, we will continue to witness the scholasticide, which is an intergenerational war. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Ms. Shahid, for sharing with us the current situation on the right to education in the OPT and also the numerous challenges faced by the children, students, and teachers, and also the importance of continued support for UNRWA in this current situation. So, the next contribution will come to us via video recorded message. Our next speaker is Mr. Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry has also documented serious violations affecting civilians. Its recent works have addressed violence by Israeli settlers and Palestinian armed groups, and in a separate report, The Devastating Consequences of the Conflict for Palestinian Children. The Commission concluded that children have suffered extensive physical and psychological harm and profound disruption to almost every aspect of their lives. These findings remind us that education, development, and human rights cannot be separated from the conditions in which people live. Because of prior engagements, Mr. Muralithar could not attend today's event, but has kindly recorded a video message which will be played now.

Good morning, Chair, Excellencies, colleagues. Thank you for inviting me to this important event. I apologize for not being there in person. Regrettably, I have not received a visa despite my best efforts. and despite my fulfilling with all the requirements. As a result, I was unable to travel to New York to present the report of the Commission to the General Assembly earlier this week on Monday. I had to resort to an online presentation. The topic of this event is one of particular importance. Human dignity is not a new or emerging concern globally, but in the occupied Palestinian territory, it is a long-standing issue that has severely and adversely impacted the Palestinian people. We do not need to look too far back. In just the period since 7 October 2023, over 75,000 Palestinians across the occupied Palestinian territory have been killed, including at least 21,500 children and 11,000 women. In the West Bank alone, more than 1,080 Palestinians were killed, and 10,950 were injured by the Israeli forces between 7 October 2023 and 30 September 2026. The report I presented to the General Assembly on Monday examines the killings and bodily and mental harm by the members of the Israeli security forces since 7 October 2023, primarily in relation to the West Bank. The report finds that the elements of crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute are fulfilled and concludes that the Israeli security authorities and forces have committed the crimes against humanity of extermination, other inhuman acts, torture, rape, and other forms of sexual violence, and persecution. The report also concludes that their conduct amounts to war crimes and violations of the law of occupation and international human rights law. Excellencies, the data and casualties I provided earlier does not include those affected by settler violence. This is because statistics alone will not fully reflect the impact that the settler violence has on the Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. I want to make it clear, as the Commission has found in its reports to the Human Rights Council and General Assembly this year, these are not isolated and discrete acts of violence committed by rogue settlers. These are state-sanctioned settler crimes, and they function as a means of implementing Israeli state policy, with both the state and violent settler groups working towards the same strategic objectives: 1. The entrenchment of Israeli settlements, 2. Annexation of the Palestinian territory, and 3. Displacement of Palestinians from their land. The crimes committed by the settlers have far-reaching effects. They uproot families, disrupt livelihoods, and they severely undermine the conditions necessary for a life of safety and ultimately, survival. Excellencies, amid the increasing violations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the genocide in Gaza continues. In a report published in September last year, the Commission concluded that Israel is responsible for the commission and failure to prevent the genocide committed in Gaza since 7 October 2023. The report presented at the General Assembly on Monday concludes that the Israeli authorities and security forces continue to commit genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza. In June this year, the Commission published a report detailing violations and crimes against Palestinian children. across the occupied Palestinian territory. The Commission concluded that Palestinian children are targeted and persecuted based on their age in Gaza, and in the report to the General Assembly on Monday, the Commission concluded that the persecutory acts against Palestinian children extended to the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Sexual, reproductive, and other forms of gendered violence continue to be used by the Israeli forces to displace, subjugate, and destabilize the Palestinian people. In Gaza, sexual violence continues to be part of a pattern to destroy the Palestinian people. Sexual violence continues also in West Bank, where it forms part of the widespread and systematic attack on the civilian population. The victims are targeted because they are Palestinian, as well as their perceived political affiliation and gender. Excellencies, earlier, I mentioned the effects of Israel's actions on Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territory, namely, the lack of conditions necessary for a life of safety and survival. Fundamentally, human dignity requires more than safety and the ability to survive. It requires the freedom and opportunity for individuals and the people to have agency over their lives and to be able to participate meaningfully in society. Ultimately, human dignity and the realization of self-determination are inseparable. Unfortunately, for the Palestinian people, this is but a mere aspiration rather than a reality. Because how can a people thrive if they are struggling to survive? When the most basic necessities, such as food, water, and shelter, are beyond reach, what remains of the promise of human dignity. Excellencies, as bleak as that is, we must not stop fighting. On the contrary, I believe that human rights progress has never been driven by the idea that change comes easily, but that change is possible. In its report, the Commission provided several recommendations to all duty bearers. Just as examples, The Commission recommends Member States to employ all means reasonably available to them to prevent and punish the crime of genocide in Gaza, and not recognize as legal the unlawful occupation of and settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, and not render any form of political, military, and economic aid or assistance or cooperation in maintaining the occupation and the settlements. Restoring and upholding human dignity, requires action from all of us. States must individually uphold their obligations under international law and, just as important, ensure collective commitment and action to achieve equality and justice. I would like to end by saying that as long as human dignity remains out of reach for the Palestinian people, our work remains unfinished, and with solidarity from the international community and concrete action from the states, there is reason for hope. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Muralidhar, for your contribution. And I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of the Commission of Inquiry for their tireless and important work. As you know, the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Judge Navi Pillay, former Chair of the Commission of Inquiry, and our heartfelt congratulations on this well-deserved distinction. I will now give the floor to our next briefer, Mr. Surya Deva, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development. Mr. Dever took up his functions in 2023 and has stressed that development must place people at its center. His recent report highlights active, free, and meaningful participation as an essential element of the right to development. This principle has particular resonance for the Palestinian people, a people whose ability to determine their own political, economic, and social future has been constrained for decades. Mr. Dever, the floor is yours.

Thank you very much, Madam Vice Chair, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to thank the Committee for inviting me to provide this briefing on this theme, human Dignity under Strain, the humanitarian and human rights consequences in the occupied Palestinian territory. In my remarks, I will focus on how Israel is violating by design right to development of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territory. I will also outline how practical tools are provided by the right to development to realize all human rights and fundamental freedoms. However, before I do so, I would like us to consider why is my colleague Francesco Albanesi, the Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, is not in the room to provide this briefing in person. It is due to illegal sanctions and the visa denial by the US government. And I just learned from the video message that Justice Murli Dhar was also denied the visa. If States continue to ignore this lawlessness, one day even they might become the target of this lawlessness. Therefore, I call on States, including the Member States of this Committee, to defend even those who are defending the rights of the Palestinian people. Madam Vice-Chair, occupation hits the very essence of the right to development. In fact, the right to development is rooted in the ongoing struggle to secure independence from political and economic colonization and to create a fair and just international order. Therefore, it is impossible for the Palestinian people to realize fully their right to development because Israel’s unlawful occupation does not allow them to exercise their right to self-determination. Even within the occupation context, Israel’s prolonged and indiscriminate attacks on civilians in Gaza, including children and women, and my colleagues have documented the numbers, have resulted in loss of thousands of innocent lives. How can dead people realize their right to development? But even those who have survived the bombing have created trauma and serious mental health issues, undermining their ability to achieve a holistic human development. Moreover, the constant expansion of illegal settlements Forced displacement, violent dispossession, and restrictions on movement mean that Palestinians’ right to development, not merely economic development, but also social, political, and cultural development, is violated daily. Let me provide a few illustrative examples. With about 80% of the total structures destroyed or damaged, the right to housing is in tatters in Gaza. The Palestinian people’s right to food has been turned into a privilege at the mercy of the occupying power. Access to public services such as water, sanitation and health has been equally affected due to indiscriminate bombing for over two years. Intensified restrictions on the movement of Palestinians have contributed to rising unemployment, declining incomes, and deepening poverty across the occupied Palestinian territory. It is estimated that 90% of Gaza’s two million olive trees have been destroyed, and Israeli settlers are attacking olive farmers in the West Bank, thus directly affecting a vital source of livelihood for Palestinians. Moreover, the right to development does not focus merely on outcomes. The process of development matters equally. However, the Palestinian people have not been able to participate in decisions affecting them. The recent Board of Peace is a case in point. The people of Palestine have had no active, free, and meaningful participation in the proposed peace, governance, and reconstruction plans imposed on them. Since the 1992 Rio Declaration, sustainability is inbuilt in the right to development. Israel's assault on Gaza has not merely killed innocent people. It has also polluted the environment and degraded the soil, water, and land in Gaza. A 2025 UNEP report has estimated that much of the Gaza's vegetation has been destroyed. When the Palestinian people's access to water, sanitation, and food is compromised, their ability to realize their development aspirations cannot be fulfilled. Distinguished delegates, let me now highlight at least five tools that the right to development offers to realize the human rights of the Palestinian people. And just to remind that this is the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development that was adopted on the 4th of December 1986. First of all, in line with Article 1.2 of the 1986 Declaration, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination including full sovereignty over all their natural wealth and resources, must be realized by ending Israel’s unlawful occupation. States must come together to achieve the two-state solution. Equal, sovereign coexistence is the only way forward to sustain peace in the region. Second, Article 5 of the Declaration requires Israel, as well as other states, to end apartheid and all forms of racial discrimination experienced by the Palestinian people. Third, in line with Article 7 of the Declaration, States should do their utmost to achieve disarmament and ensure that the same resources are used for the holistic development of the Palestinian people. In the report that I will present tomorrow to the Third Committee, I urge States to move away from funding war economies to investing in a peace economy. The occupied Palestinian territory is a good case study to show why this shift must happen. Fourth, since international cooperation is central to the right to development, States have a duty to cooperate to end the miseries experienced by the Palestinian people for decades. They should cooperate to end Israel’s occupation, as well as to prevent the ongoing genocide. States should also cooperate to hold accountable all those who have committed international crimes. Fifth and final point I wish to make is that Israel and other states that have caused or contributed to the destruction of Gaza have an obligation to repair and rebuild. The right to development requires that the Palestinian people have active, free, and meaningful participation in such reconstruction decisions. Madam Vice Chair, let me conclude by saying that the people of Palestine have an inalienable human right to development. This right does not disappear simply because of its systemic violations by an ongoing occupier. Israel and other states have legal obligations to create conditions necessary for the Palestinian people, both present and future generations, to enjoy a dignified life with all fundamental freedoms and rights. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. Dever, for sharing with us the very important update and also the five tools that RTD can offer to the Palestinian solution. And also on the focus, you know, to shift investment to peace, investment in peace economies. So I think that's a very important point too. And we have now listened to all our distinguished briefers. I would now like to open the floor for comments and questions. by committee members and observers. We will collect two or three questions first. I now give the floor to the representative from the Indonesian mission.

Thank you, Chair. Thank you very much for convening this important meeting, and allow me to also thank the Special Rapporteur and the Chair of the Commission for their comprehensive briefings and continued efforts to uphold justice and accountability for the Palestinian peoples. We have listened and we are deeply alarmed by all of your findings, which reveal a disturbing pattern. It's a disturbing, systemic, and unjustified violence to civilians as well as infrastructures in the Palestinian territory. At the same time, We see that the ceasefire has not significantly improved the well-being of people of Gaza. We are equally disturbed by the Commission’s finding of continuing international crimes in Gaza and the West Bank, including settlement expansion, settler violence, and forced displacement. We take note of Chair of Commission’s mention of the state sanctions in these issues. Allow me to reiterate as well that Indonesia see that ceasefire must translate into genuine protection for civilians, unhindered humanitarian assistance, and an end to violence. We remain steadfast in supporting an end to Israel's unlawful occupation and the realization of an independent and sovereign state of Palestine. Allow me at this juncture to pose questions to all panelists from your respective mandates. How can the UN human rights mechanism better complement each other in safeguarding evidence of violations and translating their findings into meaningful protections for civilians in Palestine? Thank you, Chair.

Thank you.

I give the floor now to Namibia, Ambassador Penda.

Thank you, Chair. Chair, let me express my appreciation to you for convening this important meeting. Let me also express my appreciation to Ambassador Mansoor for always being present in our midst, despite his very busy schedule. Chair, I take the floor to express my appreciation to the briefers for the comprehensive briefings on the events taking place in the Palestinian territory to date. Behind these briefings are real people whose lives continue to be disregarded by the genocidal, apartheid Israeli occupying power. We appreciate the hard work the briefers do in very, very difficult circumstances. I can assure you, Chair, that Namibia stands with the Palestinian people, and will continue to call for justice, for the inalienable rights, and self-determination for the Palestinian people. Indeed, the international community owes it to the Palestinian people to make sure that atrocities committed against the Palestinian people are accounted for. Further, the international community should take drastic action stop the shameful act of denying visas to the Palestinian delegation and the leadership and those working for peace in Palestine. These visas being denied, of course, by the United States in clear violation of the host country agreement with the United Nations. To the briefers, let me first of all say that Namibia remain committed to the two-state solution, as per the resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council. For the briefers, I have but only two questions. The first question is: Much of the international response has focused on immediate humanitarian needs. What is being overlooked when the crisis is viewed primarily through the humanitarian lens rather than also as a question of rights, accountability, and self-determination. The second question: There is often a significant gap between the documentation of violations and meaningful accountability. In your view, what are the principal reasons for that gap? and what practical steps could the United Nations Member States take to narrow it? I thank you, Chair.

Thank you. Thank you, Ambassador.

I give the floor to Senegal before I pass the floor to the briefers to respond to the comments and questions. Senegal, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Distinguished colleagues, I'd like to thank the experts for their instructive, clarifying briefings on the situation on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories. We note that the situation remains very concerning and requires further information. Madam Chair, in spite of the resilience of the Palestinian people, who are facing a constant threat that affects their future, their sustainable development, and the human dignity of their people. Israel, the occupying power, has already used and continues to use all possible illegal practices to undermine the Palestinians' future. In addition to forced displacement, military attacks, which continue to do damage on a daily base, basis. In addition to damage to the health system and the environment, we've also seen restrictions on the work of UNRWA and humanitarian agencies at a time when people need more support than ever before. Given this, The principles of the Charter and the Sustainable Development Agenda require the international community to act urgently and concretely to ensure that the Palestinian people are not left to their own devices. At a time when the human rights of the Palestinian people are being undermined, Israel continues to operate in impunity. The peace plan is not enough. to act against this impunity and to ensure the future of the Palestinian people. It is therefore our collective responsibility, as has been repeatedly laid out in the UN's relevant resolutions, to end this occupation, to put an end to violations of international law, and to ensure the realization of the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people. Senegal would therefore like to reiterate its support to the Palestinian people and call for greater mobilization. It is by all working together that we can preserve an independent, economically viable state of Palestine. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you to the representative from Senegal.

I will now probably invite first Ms. Francesca Albanese to respond to some of the questions and comments.

Yes, thank you, Vice Chair, and thank you to the representatives of Indonesia, Namibia, and Senegal. I would like to particularly answer the first question that came from Indonesia, concerning how human rights mechanisms can work better together. I can speak from my experience as a Special Rapporteur for four years. I have had an incredible experience in coordinating with other Special Rapporteurs. whom I thank, because it's not just about writing joint statements or joint letters. It's about bringing together our different expertise to understand the human rights system and see how it can deliver its promise. And the same thing has happened with the Commission of Inquiry and with other commissions of inquiries from whose work We should be honest and admit that the international human rights system is probably the part of the United Nations which is under the highest pressure, there is a convergence of intent or simply negligence, but resources are being cut. And it's evident in the time that is devoted to us, the extra pressure to write short reports and then that undermine the accuracy, not of our finding, the accuracy of how we can report to you. And it's very frustrating because it seems that eventually, I mean, we are devoting our time and it's for free, and we do the best we can. But frankly, the system is not supporting us. And I'm very concerned that this is the beginning of the erosion of the most important part of the United Nations, the one that remembers member states of their obligation vis-à-vis each and every person, each and every individual, each and every community in the world, because this is what the United Nations Charter is about. It's about we the people, not we the states or we organizations. And the other thing is also I I don't know how the others feel, but frankly, uh let's be honest. I I I don't know what what else the Palestinians, I mean, how much the Palestinians can survive and can endure all all this uh this evil pressure on them. Yesterday and the day before, I've been for hours on call with Palestinian children, Palestinian children from Gaza and Palestinian children from the West Bank, from Masafer Yatta, from Salfit, from Jerusalem, Silwan, Al-Bustan. It's horrible. These people are, these young people are extremely, extremely traumatized. They require urgent intervention.

Israel must be stopped.

The only, I've said it over and over in the past years, and I will say it with the same patience and the same rigor and the same firmness this year as well. Israel must get out of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. No one should feel entitled to speak about the two-state solutions, whether there is no contribution to the two-state solutions, which means to start forcing Israel out of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. And instead, I mean, we keep on entertaining discussions with the reconstruction of Gaza involving Israel. But do you imagine the dismantlement of, i mean, I don't want to quote other genocides because otherwise the attention will be devoted to that. Palestinians have been genocided by Israel. Israel needs to get to take no stage and no place in the reconstruction of Palestine and in the definition other than paying the costs of what has done. So this will not happen until decisions are made in capitals. not to send arms to Israel, not to trade with Israel, not to entertain partnership gatherings, military trainings, and surveillance technology exchange with Israel. If each and every Member State around this table or in this room or in the General Assembly will not do that, we can keep on talking, but it will continue to be in vain. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Albanese.

Perhaps Ms. Farida Shaheed, would you like to take the floor?

Thank you. I think actually Francesca has said much of what needs to be said. All I can say is that as special rapporteurs, the mandate holders of the special procedures, we are individuals, and what we can do is to point out what are the issues, and I think In terms of Palestine, we've done that on multiple occasions. We do have to have the states take actions, and I'm afraid, as Francesca said, we all.

Feel under attack now.

We feel that the human rights system is being attacked, or there is a walking back of commitment to how important it is. Already, we have very little of the budget goes into human rights, but then it's not just the budget, it's also the interaction and coming together around specific issues. I think, Francesca has said, you do need accountability of the state that is violating your international human rights and your international humanitarian laws. You need actions that will ensure that the water and food, which has been weaponized, can actually get through to the people who need it there. So I think these are actions I really do believe I believe that the Palestinian diaspora must be involved in what can be done, as well as discussions with people inside the occupied territory. And in addition to stop, if you don't stop the arms, as we said, there's a ceasefire supposedly in place. stop the killings from happening. We've given you figures. I can continue to give figures. Every day, the figures increase of how many people have been killed, what bombs have been exploded, how many schools have been affected, and students and children. This is not a way to invest in the future of peace. You need people to, one, stop all the arms, and two, I would say also, look at the fuel exports to Israel, but you do need actions to be taken by the states. We can only point out what needs to be done, so I'm really looking to all the States present here and the international cooperation that is necessary from the part of the States to take it forward. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Shahid.

I pass the floor now to Mr. Suryadeva.

Thank you very much, Madam Vice Chair, and also for the different delegations for the questions. My colleagues Francesca and Farida have outlined some of the responses. Let me complement them.

So in relation to the question.

From the representative of Indonesia, in terms of how we can document better and safeguard those violations of human rights, in addition to what has been mentioned, I think documenting violations from different lenses could also be very powerful. Of course, we have Francesca as the special rapporteur on that particular OPT, but documenting violations, let's say, from the perspective of children, documenting violations with a gender lens, documenting violations from the lens of the environment and climate change, or my mandate, right to development lens, because the impacts are cross-cutting, Human rights are interdependent, interlinked. So I think if all of us can also focus from those different lenses, that would add value to this documentation. But in addition to the challenges identified in terms of budgeting, I will add two more challenges. One is access. To document violations, it is ideal to have physical access. to the territories, to the place where the violations are taking place. And of course, the government of Israel is denying that access to us by design, deliberately, intentionally, so that the documentations are not grounded on those realities and evidence. Of course, both the Commission and the SR&OPT is still trying to document by collecting evidence remotely and that is happening, but I think that limitation is definitely there. The second issue or the challenge I see is the free media is also not allowed in those places. So it's not merely independent human rights experts that are denied access, including free, independent media is also not allowed access. And that is again precisely to avoid this documentation of violations of international criminal law, violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law. That is another challenge that we need to deal with. In relation to the two questions from the representative of Namibia, you are spot on that we are trying to address the wound, but we are not addressing the root causes enough. Because the humanitarian crisis is so grave, we are focusing on that, and of course, we need to.

Address that as well.

It's not either or. But unless we address the root causes of this, we cannot really address this issue. And the root cause is, as Francesca highlighted, the end of occupation must be the priority for us. Unless that occupation is ended, we cannot really achieve the progress that we are talking about in this particular meeting.

Now, in relation to the accountability gap, the gaps are really serious, unfortunately.

This is my first briefing to this committee, and I'll be honest, I would have liked to see more states in this room. Right? Because we have member states and observer states of this committee, and other states can also participate. Right.

So if we are dealing with such a serious.

Issue in the global world, why are states not giving priority to that issue? Of course, I understand a lot of other parallel meetings are taking place. I fully understand that. But how can states come together and put this issue on the top shelf? How can we mobilize political, legal, diplomatic, and other tools to gather collectively in a powerful way to control the illegal actions of the government of Israel and others who are supporting Israel? And I think that's where the focus on refraining from support, which is a negative thing, but also ensuring that we also take some positive steps to exclude the possibility of Israel committing those violations is crucial. Let me add my final point. We also need to expose the role of the private actors in what is happening in Israel.

The report that I am presenting tomorrow to the Third Committee, I highlight that the conflicts are becoming a profitable business for some companies and some states.

We need to expose the political economy of conflicts. Let me draw an example with a tobacco company. Tobacco companies benefit and make more profit because they sell more tobacco products.

They want more people to smoke and more people to smoke more. So the companies that are producing arms and weapons, they do not want peace, they would like conflicts. And then there's a vicious cycle. First, you destroy a country, and then you give contracts to your reconstruction companies.

So you're benefiting again from those contracts?

So I think we need to expose the political economy of these conflicts.

And unless we address that and make peace more profitable, not conflicts more profitable, because some companies and some states are profiting from conflicts.

So, States must come together, in my view, and.

Address this political economy dimension of conflicts, and that is at play here in this particular case of conflict in Gaza-Israel generally as well. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. Dever.

I see the representative from Cuba has asked for the floor. I now invite the representative from Cuba.

Thank you.

We would like to thank the panelists for their briefings. We appreciate the updates about the consequences of the policy that is being carried out by the Israeli government. We believe that human rights mechanisms need to be respected and international law must be abided by at all times. Over the last three years, the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people has led to the death of more than 70,000 people and more than 190,000 people have been injured. More than two million Palestinians have been forced to flee their homes. Many millions of homes have also been razed to the ground. Schools, hospitals, and medical facilities have also been destroyed by Israel. Israel is disproportionately using force and using hunger as a weapon of war and deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure, which is indispensable for the survival of the Palestinian people. Israel is making the most of its total impunity in this domain. Israel has escalated its illegal practices considerably over the last few months. This, we're talking here about a widespread denial of human rights, including their Palestinians' right to development, to health, to food, and the most critical of all rights, which is the right to life. The occupying power need to be held accountable for their crimes, including apartheid and genocide, violations of international humanitarian law. The fight for the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people is the fight for humanity, peace, and multilateralism. Cuba reiterates its unwavering support to the Palestinian people, and we will continue to advocate a broad settlement for this issue to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East. Thank you.

Thank you, representative from Cuba. Any other comments or questions from the floor? Okay.

If there are no further comments or questions, Ms. Abanese will also be leaving in about 15 minutes time. So I would like to thank our esteemed briefers for their insightful and pertinent briefings today. Please be assured that the committee supports your efforts and that what you presented to us today will be considered in the committee's advocacy efforts. I would now like to invite the Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in New York, Minister Riad Mansour, to deliver the closing and concluding remarks. Excellency, you have the floor.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair, and through you, we want to express our gratitude to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People at the United Nations for organizing this meeting. It's an annual meeting that the committee organizes. And also, I want to express our gratitude to our colleagues in the Bureau of the Committee, headed by the Ambassador of Senegal, and the Vice-Chair from Malaysia, Indonesia, Cuba, Namibia, and Nicaragua for their tireless work for advancing the cause of the Palestinian people and for the implementation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination, statehood, and the right of the refugees to return to their homes and properties. These are the mandates given to this committee by the General Assembly, so it is a committee that is acting on that mandate and doing everything that it can in order to advance that cause, and we are very grateful for this noble, heroic work by the committee to help us, the Palestinian people, to reach the moment of.

Of ending this.

Illegal occupation, and as was characterized by the International Court of Justice, that this prolonged occupation is illegal and it has to be terminated as rapidly as possible and unconditionally. And also, we want to thank, you know, the Division of Palestinian Rights for facilitating such meetings and the work that they do to support the work of the Committee and the Bureau of the Committee. We are grateful to them as well. Let me also express our thanks and gratitude and salutations to the three UN Special Rapporteurs, my friend Francesca Albanese, Farida Shaheed, Surya D. and Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry, Mr. Muraleedhar, for their comprehensive briefing, for their tireless work in explaining the extreme difficulties and attacks and hardship and violation of international law that the Palestinian people are going through on the hands of this vicious, illegal occupation and all of its manifestations, including the very violent settlers who are making the life of the Palestinian people, particularly in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, the hell that we are going through it, in addition to the continuous genocide that the Palestinian people are facing, particularly in the Gaza Strip. We are, you know, grateful for their presence with us. and their reports, and we reject the abuse of a party, the host country, in denying special rapporteurs and people who are part of the UN system, denying them visas to come to New York to participate with us in person. their reports and to guide our discussions in the field that they're responsible for, you know, delivering to us, whether in the Third Committee especially or in the General Assembly itself. And it's not only those special individuals were denied visas, but even our leadership, for no reason that we believe is just. and in violations of the provisions of the host country agreement, were denied their visas.

But even these, although that we reject them, they are very minute.

Things in comparison to the pain and the suffering of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the other part of the occupied Palestinian territory.

The Palestinian people are the party that is suffering.

Untold suffering as a result of this criminality from the Israeli occupying forces, especially in the Gaza Strip.

And in these days, we see it in Al-Khalil, displacement, suffering, demolitions of homes, and arrest, detention, confiscations of land.

And we see it as a continuous process of displacement.

Of Palestine refugees from the camps in Jenin, in Tulkarm, and then Ein Shams, and the tragedy of the Palestinian people.

Is continuing for a long, long period of time since the Nakba.

Now, one can give volumes of books in giving details about this tragedy and the pain of the Palestinian people, and in this regard, as I said, the special rapporteurs and others are doing a great work in giving as much details about these crimes for all countries, all agencies, all groups, all institutions, and individuals who are interested to know the details of what is really happening to us. They are contributing.

To this discourse, along with so many other organizations, some of them were mentioned by some of the briefers.

But now we are reaching a stage is not to continue describing the situation, appealing for action, condemning this criminality. Now is the time for action. And action each and every one of us, as even individuals, are capable of doing something in order to make this Israeli occupying authority and all of the manifestations of what it's doing, including its colonial efforts in the field of settlements and annexation, and displacement, each and every one of us can do something. This is the beginning of the stage that we need to do more, first as individuals, as states in their national capacity. You cannot say that you are against what Israel is doing to us and you send weapons to Israel to kill us. Match your condemnation and rejection of what they're doing by action, by not allowing them to have tools.

In order to continue doing what they're doing.

And I must say that we see elements of this new stage taking place. There are countries that are not sending weapons to Israel. There are countries that are imposing sanctions against settlements and leaders of settlement movement and ministers in Israel. It is small, it is not sufficient, but this is the beginning of a process that needs to take off to become big, to expand, to be deep, in order to become a huge movement. similar to the movement of the hundreds of millions of people who took to the streets that were chanting at the beginning of this genocide, "Peace, cease-fire now, and free, free Palestine." That action by people in the streets, by the hundreds of millions, need to be influencing governments, nations, agencies, institutions, so that more actions can take place, including not to condemn only settlements and to stop there, and to have some sanctions against it, but even new creative ideas such as the bedding for building E1 project of settlement, which is illegal. It's not sufficient to keep appealing to the government of Israel to stop, but even to threaten financial institutions and banks in Israel that will be giving loans to companies to build this illegal enterprise. The International Court of Justice said that nobody should be involved. in the continuation of this illegal occupation, that is illegal. So therefore, if you threaten banks in Israel that might contemplate funding building settlements, then you know financial institutions are coward and if you threaten that they will be on the blacklist in having relations, for example, with other banks in Europe, they might retreat. I'm just giving examples of what we could all do, and we should not forget, in the case of the struggle against apartheid and the solidarity movement was built around it, in Europe, it started by one step by a brave worker in a supermarket in Ireland who decided not to sell oranges from South Africa as a step, concrete step, action to contribute to the struggle against, you know, apartheid in South Africa. In Europe, that small step became a huge movement in Europe that influenced the whole situation and contributed in a significant way to the end of that abhorrent system of apartheid. We're beginning to see some smaller steps in Europe of that nature. It has to be followed by steps by all nations. You know what you can do. Don't dismiss any small action. Everything is important. We need to accumulate to the bravery of the Palestinian people who are defending their land and suffering immensely, and we will not Stop trying to make the ceasefire complete. It is fragile. We will not stop doing everything possible in order to send humanitarian assistance to our people in the Gaza Strip and in the occupied Palestinian territory. We will not stop doing everything that we can to defend UNRWA and to allow it to continue doing its great work in helping the Palestine refugees, including in the Gaza Strip. And we will not stop in having tens of thousands of durable housing to enter the Gaza Strip so that our people can survive the winter season in the Gaza Strip. I'm just giving examples. Each and everyone, even our children, when they say, and I used to be, when I was a kid, we used to have fundraising to help the struggle of the Algerians against, you know, the French colonialism. When we were kids, you give a piaster, you give like a nickel, a dime, we collect it and we send it to help them. All these things might be taking place in your countries. Do everything that you can. This is the time that we don't call only for action, we start the march for making these smaller steps of action into a massive movement. that will do away with this illegal occupation so that the Palestinian people can enjoy freedom and dignity through independence of their state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and continue the journey of addressing the needs of our people and attending to the wounds, the deep wounds, that were inflicted on us because of that viciousness of the occupying authority against us and denying our rights, including our right to self-determination. We will not raise the white flags. We will continue the march, and we count on all of you, those who are listening to us and those who are in this room, and those that we can tell them the story of what we are discussing.

That we need more work, more action in order to succeed in this endeavor.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair.

Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Mansoor, for your very frank and pertinent statement. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, we have now come to the end of this event. The Committee will continue its diplomatic engagement, international conferences, and advocacy here at the UN, and we will continue working with Member States, regional organizations, and civil society to mobilize support for Palestinian rights towards an independent and sovereign state of Palestine based on the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital. I thank all of you again for your participation today, and thank you to those following us on UN Web TV. And as per usual practice, the Chair's summary of this briefing will be posted on the website of the Committee, and the video recording of this event will also be available on UN Web TV and on the Committee's YouTube channel. Thank you. The meeting is adjourned.