UNSC members, int'l organisations slam Israeli attacks on Gaza hospitals

Several members of the UN Security Council have expressed concern over Israeli attacks on the hospitals in Gaza.

"The deliberate targeting of hospitals medical personnel, patients and wounded defies every principle of humanitarian law and has no justification," Asim Iftikhar, Pakistan's envoy to the UN told a Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East on Friday.

The meeting came following last week’s raid on the Kamal Adwan Hospital and the arbitrary arrest and detention of its director, Hussam Abu Safiya.

Iftikhar said nowhere on earth is international humanitarian law being "trampled" as is the case in Gaza, noting that Israeli actions are without justification and urgently require accountability.

The ambassador also called on the Council to shoulder its responsibility and not to turn a "blind eye" to the tragedy. "Silence is complicity," he added.

France's envoy to the UN, Nicolas de Riviere, said France condemns the recent Israeli military assaults targeting several hospitals, in particular that of Kamal Adwan.

"Israel must obey international humanitarian law. This requires respect for and protection of medical staff and infrastructure," he said.

Calling on Israel to allow humanitarian aid, de Riviere said all crossing points should be open and humanitarian convoys and staff must be protected.

'Ethnic cleansing'

Algeria's Permanent Representative to the UN, Amar Bendjama said ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, particularly in Gaza, has a "clear and alarming objective" which is "ethnic cleansing" especially in Gaza's north.

"The Israeli occupying power aims to erode the resilience of the Palestinian people. We must act together to put an end to this tragedy," he said.

Bendjama also called on the Council to demand an "immediate, unconditional and permanent" ceasefire in Gaza.

US deputy permanent representative to the UN, Dorothy Shea said civilians cannot be left without functioning hospitals or adequate medical care.

"It is vital for Israel to comply with international humanitarian law and to take every possible step to prevent civilian harm, notably as it relates to patients receiving care at Kamal Adwan Hospital, and medical professionals dedicated to treating the population," she said.

Russian envoy to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya said Moscow is "gravely concerned" at Israel's ongoing shelling and bombardment of civilian objects on the territory of Gaza.

Calling on Israel to obey the international humanitarian law, Nebenzya said hospitals cannot become battlefields.

"They may not be used for military purposes. And medical workers need to have opportunities to unimpededly fulfill their civilian duty and their moral duty," he added.

Hospitals become battlegrounds

Meanwhile, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk also expressed concern over ongoing Israeli attacks on health care facilities in Gaza at the meeting.

"A human rights catastrophe continues to unfold in Gaza before the eyes of the world," Turk said.

Israel's means and methods of warfare have killed tens of thousands of people, inflicted vast displacement and laid waste to the territory, he added.

"The destruction of hospitals across Gaza goes beyond depriving Palestinians of their right to access adequate health care. Those hospitals provided sanctuary for thousands of people with nowhere else to go," Turk stressed.

Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the occupied West Bank and Gaza, told the Security Council that time and again hospitals have become battlegrounds, rendering them out of service and depriving those in need of lifesaving care.

Since Oct. 2023, Peeperkorn said almost every week the WHO has issued urgent calls to protect health workers and hospitals as per international humanitarian law.

"Yet these calls remain unheard. Attacks on hospitals persist," he lamented.