United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has told the Security Council that the promise of a two-state solution was at risk of dwindling to the point of disappearance.

Guterres addressed the council’s quarterly open debate on the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

He spoke about Israel blocking all life-saving humanitarian aid recalled for nearly two months into the Gaza enclave amid resumption of hostilities after the collapse of a ceasefire in March.

Guterres also pointed to proceedings currently under way at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in relation to Israel’s legal obligations to allow and facilitate humanitarian aid in the territories it occupies.

Guterres referred to the region as being at a hinge-point in history as questions continue to simmer around the fading hopes of a decades-long promise of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine.

“Today, the promise of a two-state solution is at risk of dwindling to the point of disappearance. The political commitment to this long-standing goal is farther than it has ever been. As a result, the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians to live and peace and security have been undermined and the legitimate national aspirations of the Palestinians have been denied, while they endure Israel’s continued presence that the International Court of Justice has found unlawful and since the horrific 7 October terror attacks by Hamas, it has gotten worse on every front.”

Devastation in Gaza

Guterres pointed to a situation in turmoil; an unrelenting conflict and devastation in Gaza, including utterly inhumane conditions of life imposed on its people including the Israeli hostages still held by Hamas.

He also spoke on Israeli military operations in the occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem, settlement expansion and the dramatic altering of the regions’ geography.

Guterres also touched on settler violence continuing against the Palestinian population while Palestinian attacks against Israelis in both Israel and the West Bank continue.

“The world cannot afford to watch the two-State solution disappear. Political leaders face clear choices — the choice to be silent, the choice to acquiesce, or the choice to act. Mr President, in Gaza, there is no end in sight to the killing and misery. The ceasefire had brought a glimmer of hope, the long-sought release of hostages and delivery of lifesaving humanitarian relief. But those embers of opportunity were cruelly extinguished with the shattering of the ceasefire on 18 March. Since then, almost 2 000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza by Israeli strikes and military operations – including women, children, journalists, and humanitarians. Hamas also continues to fire rockets towards Israel indiscriminately – while the hostages continue to be held in appalling conditions. The humanitarian situation throughout the Gaza Strip has gone from bad to worse, to beyond imagination.”

ICJ proceedings

The International Court of Justice delivered an advisory opinion in July last year determining that Israel’s continued occupation of Palestinian territories was illegal, which Israel has since rejected as a “decision of lies”.

The UN Chief called for the trampling of international law to end; and referred to current proceedings at the ICJ in the Hague, with an oral statement by the UN legal counsel to the World Court earlier this week, echoed in the Council.

“The statement to the court includes points that I have made on a number of occasions. Specifically, that all parties to conflict must comply with all their obligations under international law, including international human rights law and international humanitarian law. That Israel, as an occupying Power, is under an obligation to ensure food and medical supplies of the population. That Israel has an obligation to agree to and facilitate relief schemes in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. That humanitarian, medical and United Nations personnel must be respected and protected. And I emphasize the obligation under international law to respect the privileges and immunities of the United Nations and its personnel, including the absolute inviolability of United Nations premises, property and assets – and the immunity from legal process of the United Nations. Such immunity applies to all UN entities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory – including UNRWA – a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly.”

Guterres argues that the two-state solution is near a point of no return and that the international community has a responsibility to prevent the perpetual occupation and violence – calls that have failed to produce any shift in the current trajectory.

He urged member states to take irreversible action towards implementing the two-state solution, not to let extremists on any side undermine what remains of the peace process; and to go beyond affirmations and to think creatively about the concrete steps needed to support a viable two-state solution before it was too late.

VIDEO | Public hearings begin at ICJ to examine Israel’s obligations in Palestine: