Situation in Middle East is 'alarming': UN

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - A UN official on Friday warned against the regional spillover of the Gaza conflict, and called for an immediate cease-fire in the Palestinian enclave.

"The situation in the Middle East is alarming. This includes several interconnected theatres conflict," Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East and Asia and the Pacific, told UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

Stressing that the civilians in Gaza bear the brunt of this conflict, Khiari said the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate, and called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza.

"The risk of regional spillover of this conflict with potential devastating consequences for the entire region remains high given also a multitude of actors involved," he added.

Referring to the Houthi threat in the Red Sea, Khiari said it is a "growing concern" which he said has potential ramifications at a global scale if regional and international shipping and supply chains are adversely impacted by further escalation in the Red Sea.

"The United Nations continues to encourage de-escalation and a cessation of attacks and threats so that traffic through the Red Sea can return to its normal state and the risk of Yemen being dragged into a regional conflagration be avoided," he added.

- Settler violence remains 'grave concern'

Turning to the heightened tensions in the occupied West Bank, Khiari said recent weeks have seen "some of the most intensive Israeli operations in the West Bank since the Second Intifada."

Stressing that settler violence remains a "grave concern" and continues at high levels, he added that 304 Palestinians, including 79 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem since Oct. 7.

"We must restore a political horizon and move towards the only viable possibility for a peaceful future -- a two-state solution--, with Gaza as an integral part of an independent Palestinian State," he added.

Majed Bamya, Deputy Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine to the UN said for over 80 days, 2.3 million Palestinians have been fighting for their lives

"...Every single day for 80 days. There is undeniable evidence, multiple confessions of the criminal nature of this assault and of its criminal objectives, the destruction of people to force the displacement," he added.

Bamya said that Israel wants to make sure that Palestinians in Gaza have no homes to return to.

"They want to make sure they have no life to return. They want to make sure that life in Gaza is no longer possible, with one aim, what they call ‘voluntary migration’ … 'Voluntary migration' the codename for forced displacement. These are the options for Palestinians: Destruction or displacement, death or displacement," he said.

The envoy also stressed that there is a war against the Palestinian people as a whole against their existence, homeland, identity, history and culture.

"...One day the massacres will stop, but how will we get over it? How will we get over the mass graves, the inability to bury our loved ones?" he said.

- Palestinians 'have suffered enough'

Addressing the Council, Marwan Muasher, Vice President for Studies, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan, said the Palestinians "have suffered enough."

"The first priority has to be to end the war on Gaza immediately and permanently, Muasher added. He also said if a two-state solution is deemed difficult to effect today, it will become impossible in the future due to the demographic and political realities.

For his part, Itay Epshtain, Special Advisor and Senior Humanitarian Law and Policy Consultant at the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), said civilians are desperate for safety.

"NRC stresses that peace is the only viable solution for civilians in occupied Palestinian territory and Israel," he added.

Since Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, Israel has continued relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip, killing at least 21,507 Palestinians and injuring 55,915, according to local health authorities.

Authorities claim the Hamas attacks have killed around 1,200 Israelis.

The Israeli onslaught has left Gaza in ruins, with 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure damaged or destroyed and nearly 2 million residents displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicines.