Gaza neighbours cannot alone absorb Israel pernicious practices: UN rapporteur after Egypt visit

Ahram Online , Thursday 25 Apr 2024

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territory, said at the end of her visit to Egypt that Gaza's neighbours cannot alone absorb the Israeli “pernicious” practices there.

Francesca Albanese
Francesca Albanese. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory. AFP

 

“Surrounding countries cannot alone absorb the impact of Israel’s pernicious practices of killing and displacement from Gaza,” Albanese said.

Albanese suggested that the process of providing assistance to address the Israeli actions in Gaza be mainstreamed through the UN humanitarian coordinator.

“This will alleviate responsibility for Egypt and the Egyptian people,” she said.

Albanese also called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and a cessation of Israel’s illegal control of Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territory.

She added that people in Gaza are facing “unspeakable horrors,” highlighting the increased restrictions and abuses, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings faced by people in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

“Israeli policies spanning the occupied Palestinian territory are unquestionably endangering Palestinian existence on their land,” she said.

“The focus of the international community must zero in on the most likely implication – the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians – and States must do everything in their power to prevent it,” Albanese noted.

Unrelenting support
 

Since the start of the war, Egypt has delivered substantial amounts of aid to Gaza, coming from Egyptian organizations and civil work society and other world countries and global agencies.

Egypt has repeatedly called for boosting aid to Gaza to prevent a looming famine, warning against Israel's aid obstruction and use of hunger as a weapon against the Palestinians in the strip.

In April, Egypt announced increasing the number of humanitarian aid trucks entering Gaza through the Rafah border to 300 daily.

A total of 19,354 trucks have entered the strip through the Rafah crossing since the start of the war, Head of the State Information Service (SIS) Diaa Rashwan said on 7 April.

These carried 19,952 tons of medical supplies, 10,435 tons of fuel, 123,453 tons of food, 26,692 tons of water, 44,103 tons of other relief materials, and 2,023 tons of tents and tarpaulin.

Rashwan added that Egypt has received 3,764 injured and sick people from Gaza, along with 6,191 accompanying them, and provided 123 fully equipped ambulances.

Furthermore, the country has safely evacuated 66,759 foreign nationals (including those with dual citizenship) and 6,330 Egyptians from the besieged strip, he stated.

Since 7 October, Israel has killed over 34,000 people, injured more than 77,000, destroyed most of the infrastructure in Gaza, and displaced the majority of civilians.

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