Statement by the Director of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee on the Situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory – These crimes must stop

As world leaders gather in New York for the 79th United Nations General Assembly, and as the threat of a wider regional escalation looms, we renew our demand for an end to the horrific human suffering and humanitarian disaster in Gaza.

We mourn the loss of innocent lives everywhere, including those killed on October 7 and during the 11 months of conflict since then.

We urgently call for a permanent, immediate and unconditional ceasefire. This is the only way to end the suffering of civilians and save lives.

All hostages and all arbitrarily detained must be released immediately and unconditionally.

Humanitarians must have safe and unimpeded access to those in need.

We cannot do our work in the face of overwhelming need and constant violence. More than 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza – most of them civilians, including women, children, the elderly and sometimes entire families – have reportedly been killed and more than 95,500 injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. An estimated quarter of those injured in Gaza, or about 22,500 people, will require lifelong specialized rehabilitation and supportive care, including individuals with severe limb injuries, amputations, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries and major burns.

More than 2 million Palestinians are without protection, food, water, sanitation, shelter, health care, education, electricity and fuel – the basic necessities for survival. Families were forcibly displaced, again and again, from one unsafe place to another, with no way out.

The dignity, safety, health and rights of women and girls are seriously threatened.

The risk of famine remains as all 2.1 million residents are still in urgent need of food and assistance for survival as humanitarian access remains limited.

Healthcare has been decimated. More than 500 attacks on healthcare have been recorded in Gaza.

Aid hubs were forced to move and rebuild many times; convoys carrying rescue aid were fired upon, their access was delayed; and humanitarian workers were killed in unprecedented numbers. The number of aid workers killed in Gaza last year is the highest ever in a single crisis.

The unnecessary and disproportionate force unleashed in the West Bank, combined with escalating settler violence, house demolitions, forced displacement and discriminatory movement restrictions, has caused an increase in deaths and casualties.

The war also threatens the future of all Palestinians and makes eventual recovery far out of reach.

Meanwhile, close to 100 hostages remain in Gaza, while freed hostages have reported abuse, including sexual violence.

The behavior of the parties over the past year makes a mockery of their claim to adhere to international humanitarian law and the minimum standards of humanity it requires.

Civilians must be protected and their basic needs met. There must be accountability for serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law.

Aid and humanitarian organizations are doing their best to provide aid to Gaza and the West Bank, often at great personal risk, and many aid workers are paying the ultimate price.

Our ability to deliver is undisputed if we are given the access we need. The first round of the polio vaccination campaign, which covered more than 560,000 children under the age of 10, is just one example. The second round of vaccination must be carried out safely and reach all children in Gaza.

We once again call on world leaders to use their influence to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law, international human rights law and the judgments of the International Court of Justice – through diplomatic pressure and cooperation to end impunity.

Let's be clear: the protection of civilians is a fundamental principle of the global community and is in the interest of all countries. Allowing the hideous downward spiral caused by this war in the occupied Palestinian territory to continue will have unimaginable, global consequences.

These atrocities must stop.

Signatories:

• Ms Joyce Msuya, Acting Emergency Coordinator and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
• Ms. Sofia Sprechmann Sineiro, Secretary General, (CARE International)
• Dr Qu Dongyu, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
• Ms. Anne Reitsema, Chief Executive Officer (Medair)
• Ms. Amy E. Pope, Director General, International Organization for Migration (IOM)
• Mr. Tom Hart, President and Chief Executive Officer (Interaction)
• Ms. Tjada D'Oyen McKenna, Chief Executive Officer, (Mercy Corps)
• Mr. Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
• Ms. Paula Gaviria Betancur, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons (SR on HR of internally displaced persons)
• Mr. Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
• Ms. Janti Soeripto, President and Chief Executive Officer (Save the Children US)
• Ms Anacláudia Rossbach, Executive Director, United Nations Human Settlements Program (A-Habitat)
• Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
• dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
• Ms. Catherine Russell, Executive Director, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
• Ms. Sima Bahous, Deputy Secretary General and Executive Director (UN Women)
• Ms. Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the World Food Program (WFP)
• Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO)