NEW YORK, Jan 21 (KUNA) -- The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) strongly condemned the Israeli occupation's aggression against Gaza, targeting and displacing civilians, during the high-level open session of the UN Security Council meeting. During the meeting, held late Monday, the GCC considered the actions of the Israeli occupation as war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law.
Kuwait Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Tareq Al-Bannai delivered a statement on behalf of the GCC countries during the open session on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian issue.
They discussed the development in Palestine and condemn the Israeli occupation, and expressed the GCC's solidarity with the Arab Group's statement, delivered by Egypt.
He commended the January 15 announcement in Doha about the successful mediation efforts between Qatar, Egypt, and the US to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, and Al-Bannai emphasized the importance of implementing all aspects of the agreement to ensure the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid.
Al-Bannai praised the efforts of the Ministerial Committee tasked by the Extraordinary Arab-Islamic Summit to stop the aggression on Gaza, underlining the importance of international efforts to ensure the Israeli occupation's adherence to its responsibilities, and stressed the need to lift the blockade on Gaza and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid.
The GCC called on the Israeli occupation to be held accountable for its continuous violations, which have resulted in the deaths of thousands of Palestinian civilians, and the GCC welcomed the International Criminal Court's decision in November 2024 regarding this matter.
The GCC expressed its rejection of the Israeli Knesset's legislation aimed at banning the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), stressing that the continued presence of the agency is a lifeline for millions of Palestinian refugees, and urged the international community to provide political and financial support to UNRWA and to ensure the protection of its workers.
Al-Bannai called on the Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities and take binding action to guarantee the cessation of the Israeli occupation's aggression and the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid.
He emphasized the necessity of advancing the implementation of the two-state solution in accordance with international legitimacy and the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, and highlighted the importance of a solution that ensures the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Al-Bannai expressed the GCC's anticipation for the upcoming international conference scheduled for June 2025 at the UN General Assembly, under the joint chairmanship of Saudi Arabia and France. (end) mnf.dss