Speakers in Security Council Urge Israel to Refrain from Military Action, Evacuation Orders in Gaza as UN, Aid Partners Prepare for Vaccine Campaign amid Polio Outbreak
As the United Nations and its humanitarian partners prepare for a vaccination campaign in Gaza to deal with the polio outbreak, speakers in the Security Council urged Israel to refrain from military operations and evacuation orders to ensure that those delivering and receiving services can do so safely.
The 10-month-old infant who died of polio in Gaza — after 25 years of a polio-free Palestine — was born during wartime and never vaccinated, reported Mike Ryan, Deputy Director-General and Executive Director of the Health Emergency Programme at the World Health Organization (WHO). “The current outbreak in Gaza is a stark reminder of how quickly infectious diseases can re-emerge in regions where health systems are compromised,” he said, noting that many other maladies are spreading while the collective capacity to prevent, detect and respond to them continues to be hindered.
He therefore welcomed the commitment to “area-specific humanitarian pauses and suspension of evacuation orders” for the implementation of a two-round polio vaccination campaign, set to begin in Gaza on 1 September. During each round, the Palestinian Ministry of Health — in collaboration with WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) — will provide two drops of a WHO-prequalified “nOPV2” vaccine to more than 640,000 children under 10 years of age.
The campaign will begin in central Gaza and then move south and finally north, with each area covered over three days. Noting that at least 90 per cent vaccination coverage during each round is needed to stop the outbreak and “prevent international spread of polio”, he stressed that — due to factors such as insecurity, damaged infrastructure and constant displacement — “we know an additional day or two is very often needed to achieve sufficient coverage”. “The safety of every single one of the over 2,180 vaccinators must be guaranteed,” he underscored.
He also detailed the “much larger public health catastrophe” in which the polio outbreak is occurring. As of 25 August, only 44 per cent of primary health-care facilities are functional and attacks on health care continue to be reported. Evacuation orders are further disrupting health-care provision, endangering critical health infrastructure and hampering the delivery of essential supplies. Calling on the international community to act now to secure humanitarian pauses, ensure the delivery of critical health supplies and support the rapid implementation of the polio vaccination campaign, he stressed: “The world cannot stand by as Gaza’s health system crumbles under the weight of this conflict.”
Also briefing the Council today was Joyce Msuya, Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Acting Emergency Relief Coordinator, who described the humanitarian community in Gaza as working relentlessly to stop the spread of polio, “a disease that the world thought it had under control”. She added: “I don’t need to tell you how disastrous it would be if we were unable to contain this preventable disease — a disease that knows no borders.” Noting that Israel has facilitated the entry of all requested polio vaccines and equipment, she said: “What is now most important is to ensure both the security and access needed to implement the campaign effectively.”
Highlighting the difficulties faced by the Organization’s humanitarian workers, she said: “In the past week alone, our teams have been displaced and shot at. We have lost offices and warehouses and limited supplies have continued to dwindle.” Her World Food Programme (WFP) colleagues were fired upon two days ago in their marked vehicle “and survived by sheer luck”, she said, adding that it is difficult to plan more than 24 hours in advance because “we struggle to know what supplies we will have, when we will have them or where we will be able to deliver.” The lives of 2.1 million people cannot depend on luck and hope alone, she stressed.
She also pointed to a spike in evacuation orders issued by the Israeli military, noting that the 25 August order led to the largest relocation of UN staff since October 2023. “Communities live in a state of limbo, never knowing when the next order to flee will come,” she said, adding that civilians are now being forced into the equivalent of 11 per cent of the territory of Gaza. “Any and every square foot of available land is being used for shelter,” she said, adding that temporary encampments have even been built on the beach right up to the water’s edge. After calls from Member States, the Israeli military has, for the first time, issued a reversal of orders for three blocks in Deir al-Balah — the UN teams are working to confirm if they can now return to the premises they had to leave on 25 August, she said.
“What we have witnessed over the past 11 months — and continue to witness — calls into question the world’s commitment to the international legal order that was designed to prevent these tragedies,” she added. Hungry, thirsty, sick and homeless, civilians have been pushed beyond the limits of human endurance. The UN remains on the ground, “planning as best we can” she said, adding that despite insufficient stocks, aid partners continue to provide food, health care, shelter materials when possible, “and amid the destruction, spaces for children to learn”.
“We have repeatedly informed you of the harrowing levels of death, injury and destruction that raise very serious concerns about compliance with international humanitarian law,” she said. The Council must ensure strict adherence to international humanitarian law and international human rights law. All hostages must be released without conditions, and all civilians must be protected, and their essential needs must be met, including by ensuring the unhindered provision of humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza, she said.
When the floor opened for discussion, delegates reiterated the briefers’ call for a safe vaccination campaign, and citing the recent attack on a WFP vehicle, urged Israel to ensure humanitarian protection for aid workers.
Polio had nearly been eradicated through the dedicated efforts of international health partners, the representative of the United States observed. The return of confirmed polio cases in Gaza threatens the health of the most vulnerable Palestinian civilians, including children, he said, adding: “It is especially important for Israel to facilitate access for agencies carrying out the vaccination campaign and for it to ensure periods of calm and refrain from military operations during the vaccination campaign.”
Urging that country to avoid further evacuation orders, he also expressed alarm about reports that the Israel Defense Forces fired repeatedly on a WFP vehicle on Wednesday. Though Israel has said after an initial review that this was the result of a communication error between its military units, “the simple fact is almost 11 months into this conflict incidents such as yesterday's remain all too common”, he pointed out. Also noting another incident in which Israel’s army fired towards a UNICEF vehicle, he said: “Israel must not only take ownership for its mistakes but also take concrete actions to ensure the IDF does not fire on UN personnel again. Adding that “we must not ignore how Hamas's actions continue to put” civilians and humanitarian personnel at risk, he said his country along with Qatar and Egypt continue to engage the parties on a final deal.
The representative of the United Kingdom also expressed concern about the Israel Defense Forces opening fire on the WFP truck, noting that the vehicle had been fully coordinated with Israel and had UN workers inside. Calling on Tel Aviv to take immediate steps to protect aid workers, he said that despite repeated calls for deconfliction and protection of aid operations, such appalling attacks on UN and aid convoys continue to take place. This conflict already represents the deadliest by far for humanitarian personnel, he observed.
The major polio outbreak which has already claimed a child, he said, is “a tragedy could have been prevented”. Welcoming Israel's agreement for pauses on military operations so that WHO and health agencies can deliver a safe and effective campaign, he said “we now need to see this in action.” The pauses need to be long enough to deliver the required vaccinations. “When the campaign starts and thousands of vulnerable and unaccompanied children gather at vaccination sites, they must all be protected,” he underscored.
Likewise, the speaker for the Republic of Korea, noting that polio is highly contagious and significantly threatening Palestinian children in Gaza, called on all parties to let health workers fulfil their vital mission. However, this becomes an almost impossible task, he said, as nowhere and no one in Gaza is safe, not civilians, not even children, not medical workers, and not UN staff
Japan’s speaker deplored the attack on the WFP vehicle carrying humanitarian cargo to central Gaza. “Clearly, deconfliction mechanisms are still woefully insufficient,” he said. The so-called “safe zones” are nothing of the sort. It is unacceptable that UN aid vehicles in Gaza continue to be fired upon. His counterpart from Ecuador called on parties to uphold norms of international humanitarian law — always and in all circumstances. An immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of the hostages, improvement of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, is vitally important so that this agreement can come to fruition without any further delays. Malta’s delegate noted that since last October, around 280 UN and humanitarian workers have been killed. Such chilling statistics underline a failure to abide by international law and international humanitarian law, he said, adding that UN humanitarian operations currently hang by a thread.
“Long time ago, we exhausted our vocabulary of words to describe the tragedy of Gaza,” Slovenia’s speaker told Council members. There must be reinforcement among troops of rules of engagement and obligations. This includes respect for the UN, its mission, its work and its staff. While he welcomed progress related to polio vaccination campaigns, he reiterated that more needs to be done. The war must end, he said, reminding delegates that the Advisory Opinion by the International Court of Justice is clear: Israel’s continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory is unlawful and must end as rapidly as possible.
Several delegates drew attention to the burden posed by Israel’s evacuation orders, with Guyana’s representative noting that such orders — sometimes issued “with very little notice” — affect humanitarian operations by shrinking the spaces where humanitarian actors operate and civilians dwell. Before 7 October 2023, there were 1,200 persons per square kilometre in Gaza — that number has risen to 40,000. Noting that the constant evacuations and shrinking space for civilians has given rise to disease, including the re-emergence of polio, she said: “History will judge us harshly if this Council does not act to save the Palestinian people from the scourge of this unending onslaught, in flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter and international law”.
“This is unacceptable,” Switzerland’s delegate stressed, noting that the Israeli army's orders have caused the displacement of almost 90 per cent of the inhabitants, who live on less than 11 per cent of the Gaza Strip. In addition to uprooting already exhausted families, the orders pose enormous obstacles to aid activities. And with each displacement, humanitarian actors lose access to the premises and logistical infrastructure they need to operate — as was the case on Sunday night in Deir al-Balah. All parties have an obligation to allow unimpeded humanitarian access to all civilians in need. This also applies to armed groups such as Hamas. And Israel — as the occupying Power, and as recalled by the International Court of Justice — is obliged to fulfil the humanitarian needs of the population.
Speaker after speaker pointed to the deteriorating conditions in the West Bank, in addition to the situation in Gaza. The representative of Sierra Leone, Council President for August, spoke in his national capacity, voicing alarm over Israel’s “massive” 28 August military operation in the West Bank. Recent reports from the Occupied Palestinian Territory convey “a high sense of fear and desperation” among both Palestinians and humanitarian personnel, he observed. “Let me close by reminding parties to the conflict to unreservedly adhere to their obligations under international law,” he said.
China’s delegate noted that Israel’s expansion of settlements and ramping up of searches, arrests and raids against the Palestinians are all violations of international law. Citing the Israeli military’s launch Wednesday of a large-scale military operation targeting Jenin and other cities in the West Bank, he said senior Israeli officials recently spoke of using the same approach in the West Bank as they have employed in Gaza operations. “Shocked by such extreme remarks,” he stated: “We must never allow the same humanitarian catastrophe to happen in the West Bank, which would turn it into another hell on Earth.”
“France is opposed to any occupation by Israel of the West Bank,” that country’s representative said, condemning all acts of provocation and any unilateral measures both there and in Jerusalem. Israel’s settlement policy is in breach of international law, she said, demanding that the country take all measures to stop the unacceptable settler attacks on the civilian Palestinian population in West Bank. The vaccination campaign that is about to begin is not negotiable, she added, while reiterating commitment to Israel’s security and condemning the terrorist barbaric attacks and sexual violence committed on 7 October by Hamas and other terrorist groups.
Several delegates pointed to the Council’s “collective responsibility” to urge de-escalation in the Gaza Strip, with Mozambique’s representative underlining the need to advocate for the safety of civilians caught in the crossfire. He therefore called on all Council members to work towards both establishing “peace and stability in this troubled region” while adhere to their obligations under international law,” he said.
“Humanitarian workers have single-handedly been trying to help the people in Gaza survive unprecedented decisions undertaken by Israel,” said the Russian Federation’s representative. The words used today to describe the catastrophic situation in the enclave have transformed into “futile clichés”, he observed, adding that the majority of those who are suffering are entirely innocent women and children. Humanitarian workers — who fulfil their heroic duty and constantly risk their lives — cannot confront military personnel or defend themselves and, therefore, are unable to work under circumstances of active hostilities. Accordingly, he asserted, “the Council does not have the moral right to demand that they sacrifice their lives while doing nothing to compel the parties to cease fire”.
Algeria’s delegate, in that vein, underlined that “humanitarian workers are not obligated to risk their lives; rather, it is our obligation to provide them with protection.” Calling for an immediate ceasefire, he emphasized that “the scale of brutality that the Palestinians are subjected to” and the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory cannot be addressed otherwise. The policy adopted by Israel aims to kill hope in the hearts of the Palestinians, humiliate them and undermine the public order in Gaza, he said.
The representatives of the United States and the Russian Federation exchanged words further after all the speakers in the Council had taken the floor. The former said that Moscow neither contributes to resolving the conflict in Gaza nor understands its complications; instead it demeans the work of the United States, Qatar and Egypt. The Russian Federation’s representative recalled that his delegation had presented a ceasefire resolution in the Council in October which was vetoed by the delegate of the United States. “I don't need to sit here and explain to you why the US did what it did with regard to these resolutions,” the representative of the United States said in response, adding that implementation is the issue. Hamas, at many times, has changed its views on some of the steps that were previously agreed on, he added. To which, the Russian Federation’s delegate said the United States bears the brunt of responsibility for what is currently taking place in Gaza. “If my colleagues lack the courage to say this to your face, I have no problem doing so,” he added.