COPENHAGEN, 13 November 2023 – Malik Ben Achour (Belgium), Rapporteur of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, today issued the following statement regarding the ongoing military operation in Gaza:

“I am deeply concerned about the increasingly dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. The escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas has caused shocking human suffering, with devastating effects of the war on children and women in particular, who make up nearly 70 per cent of the victims. With each passing day, the collapse of the humanitarian system in Gaza has unimaginable consequences for more than two million civilians living under siege.

The level of humanitarian assistance that is reaching Gaza is absolutely inadequate. Humanitarian aid, including food, medicine, water and fuel, is desperately needed and must be allowed to reach all civilians quickly and safely. Reiterating my unequivocal condemnation of the brutal 7 October terror attacks by Hamas that killed over 1,200 people and my appeal to facilitate the unconditional release of all hostages, I equally condemn in the strongest terms the targeting of civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools and residential buildings in Gaza, where the death toll has reportedly surpassed 11,000 and keeps climbing.

Tragically, this conflict has also been the deadliest conflict for the United Nations, with over 100 employees killed in Gaza, which amounts to more United Nations aid workers killed than in any comparable period in the history of the organization. Further, the number of journalists killed – more than one a day – while reporting on the war has exceeded the highest monthly death toll previously recorded among those covering conflict.

I call for an immediate ceasefire to fully enable the delivery of life-saving humanitarian aid for all people in need in Gaza, and strongly urge all parties to the conflict to allow unimpeded humanitarian access in line with core principles of international humanitarian law.”