Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry emphasized that the crisis in Gaza did not begin on October 7th, but had worsened significantly prior to that date due to the denial of Palestinian rights. Speaking at a G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Shoukry criticized some countries for not calling for an end to the war in Gaza, arguing that the international system has failed due to its complete inability to enforce peace and security mechanisms to halt the conflict.
Shoukry highlighted the unprecedented crisis the international system is facing, including its failure to uphold its principles and norms. He pointed out that the violation of international law and humanitarian law in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of over 29,000 Palestinians, two-thirds of whom are women and children, with hospitals, universities, schools, mosques, and churches being bombed and destroyed.
The Foreign Minister also noted another aspect of the international system’s failure: the inability to maintain the idea of an international community where empathy and shared values like solidarity prevail over exclusion, fear, revenge, and racism. He mentioned that more than two million Palestinians in Gaza are under a complete blockade by Israel, left to starve or forced to flee without finding any safe place in Gaza.
Shoukry criticized many countries for refraining from demanding an end to the war, and he also highlighted the issue of media censorship and the distortion of facts, where Palestinian casualties are often referred to as deaths rather than killings. This raises questions about the value placed on human lives.
The Minister lamented the international system’s total failure in using its peace and security mechanisms to end the war, noting the current conflict in Gaza as relatively the bloodiest and most destructive in modern military history. He pointed out the continued resistance within the Security Council to calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities and expressed hope that everyone would realize that the crisis did not start on October 7th but had been exacerbated over a long time due to the denial of inalienable Palestinian rights and the suffering inflicted by unilateral actions.
The situation in Gaza since the recent conflict on October 7 has been dire, with significant humanitarian and healthcare challenges being reported. Hospitals in Khan Younis, such as Nasser and Al-Amal, have run out of food due to the ongoing Israeli siege, posing a great risk to thousands of lives inside these medical centers. The UN relief chief has also reported that aid to Gaza continues to be blocked, exacerbating the situation further.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has documented nearly 600 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza and the West Bank since the war began, leading to the death of 613 people within health facilities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including 606 in Gaza. These attacks have affected 94 healthcare facilities, including 26 hospitals, and 79 ambulances in the Gaza Strip alone. The ongoing reduction of humanitarian space and the continuous attacks on healthcare are pushing the people of Gaza to a breaking point, with children facing a deadly triple threat to their lives due to rising diseases, plummeting nutrition, and the escalation in hostilities.
The UN has stressed the importance of not looking away from the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. The Secretary-General called on the Security Council to adopt a resolution recognizing the Palestinian independent State with Jerusalem as its capital along the pre-1967 borders. Various international representatives have echoed the urgency of addressing the root causes of the conflict and the need for an integrated and comprehensive approach to end the occupation and work towards a two-State solution.
