“Serious Concerns” of Escalation in Region, particularly between Israel & Hezbollah along Blue Line

Briefing by Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary-General, on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland expressed his “serious concerns” about the risk of escalation in the region, particularly between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line.

Speaking to the Council today (25 Jun), Wennesland reiterated the Secretary-Generals' concern that “further military escalation will only guarantee more suffering, more devastation to communities in Lebanon and Israel, and more potentially catastrophic consequences for the region.”
“In complement to the efforts of UNSCOL and UNIFIL,” the Special Coordinator said that he is encouraging all sides to “immediately take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation.”

He also emphasized, “The ongoing hostilities in Gaza are further fueling regional instability. There must be an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate humanitarian ceasefire – there is a deal on the table and it should be agreed.”

Wennesland highlighted, “Effective mechanisms for humanitarian notification, safe conditions for humanitarian operations, and sufficient access to humanitarian needs remain sorely lacking and must be put in place without delay.”

“Following another series of serious security incidents this last weekend impacting humanitarian actors in Gaza, the UN welcomes the opportunity to clarify with the IDF on how the current situation can be clearly improved,” the Special Coordinator added.

Wennesland stressed that hunger and food insecurity persist in Gaza, adding that “while projections of imminent famine in the northern governates have been averted through an increase in food deliveries, food insecurity has worsened in the south.”

“Nearly all of Gaza’s population continues to face high levels of food insecurity, with nearly half a million people facing ‘catastrophic’ insecurity,” he warned.

Wennesland also said ,“The escalating violence and tensions in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are deeply worrying.”

He added, “Intensified armed exchanges between Palestinians and Israeli security forces alongside lethal attacks by Palestinians against Israelis and by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, have also exacerbated tensions and led to exceedingly high levels of casualties and detentions. All perpetrators of attacks must be held accountable.”

The Special Coordinator reiterated that “security forces in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, must exercise maximum restraint and use lethal force only when it is strictly unavoidable to protect life.”

"Mister President,
Members of the Security Council,
Before turning to my regular briefing, allow me to express my serious concerns about the risk of escalation in the region, particularly between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line. I reiterate the Secretary-Generals' concern that further military escalation will only guarantee more suffering, more devastation to communities in Lebanon and Israel, and more potentially catastrophic consequences for the region. In complement to the efforts of UNSCOL and UNIFIL, I am encouraging all sides to immediately take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation.
The ongoing hostilities in Gaza are further fueling regional instability. There must be an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate humanitarian ceasefire – there is a deal on the table and it should be agreed. I welcome the efforts, including by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to reach such deal. The UN stands ready to support its implementation.
I will now turn to my regular briefing on the situation in the Middle East devoted to the thirtieth report on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2334 (2016). The Secretary-General’s written report covers the period between 19 March and 10 June 2024.
Since the submission of the written report, intensive hostilities between Hamas and Israel Defense Forces in Gaza have continued, resulting in hundreds of fatalities.
The devastating impact of the hostilities on the civilian population in Gaza, and the unprecedented humanitarian crisis remain deeply alarming. I have witnessed the deteriorating security situation on each of my visits. Ongoing military operations and a near total breakdown of civil order have resulted in multiple reported incidents of theft of relief supplies and shootings that posed significant risks to the population and humanitarian workers. A shooting incident on 15 June that resulted in the killing of two Palestinians while an aid convoy was on the road prompted the cancellation of convoys to Kerem Shalom Crossing between 16 and 18 June to mitigate risks.
Excerpt]

Full remarks [as delivered]: https://unsco.unmissions.org/security-council-briefing-situation-middle-east-reporting-unscr-2334-delivered-un-special-7