Published on: 2026-06-19
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Ceasing fire in Gaza is formally expected to begin in October 2025, however during this time hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, and 2.1 million people still lack permanent housing. The UN Security Council met on Thursday to discuss the situation in the enclave. The meeting was convened at the initiative of ten non-permanent members and with the support of four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United Kingdom, China, Russia, and France.
Speaking at the meeting, the Deputy Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher reminded thatSecurity Council Resolution 2803 (2025), adopted after months of intensive intermediary efforts, yielded certain results. In particular, the number of civilian casualties as a result of Israeli strikes on Gaza decreased, the remaining hostages taken by HAMAS during the attacks on October 7, 2023, were released, and some obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid were also removed.
Fletcher noted that six months after the ceasefire regime came into effect, the Gaza Strip is no longer classified as a territory experiencing mass starvation. Nevertheless, the situation is still assessed as extremely severe.
Minimal progress
As emphasized by the UN Deputy Secretary-General, resolution 2803 and the plan proposed by US President Donald Trumphad to ensuremuch more significant changes.
“These rough achievements are only the minimum of what is necessary for the Palestinians, what we can provide and what international law requires,” Fletcher stated.
According to him, the results achieved only indicate the onset of the most catastrophic scenario, while even the basic needs of the population have not yet been met.
The emergency aid coordinator reported that since the ceasefire was declared, according to the Ministry of Health data, almost a thousand Palestinians have been killed and wounded in Gaza.
Millions need help
Fletcher also noted that about 70 percent of the population needs housing, and the service provision system is on the verge of collapse. At the same time, the humanitarian response plan received less than a quarter of the necessary funding.
The UN representative called on the Security Council to achieve the protection of the civilian population, including humanitarian workers, ensuring safe, stable, and unimpeded humanitarian access throughout the territory of Gaza, as well as allocating funding corresponding to the scale of the crisis.
“The civilian population cannot wait for a more convenient diplomatic moment to receive the resources necessary for survival,” Fletcher emphasized.
“The ceasefire doesn’t work”
“The ceasefire does not work,” said Bushra Khalidi, head of the humanitarian policy department of Oxfam International, at the meeting.
She noted that she appears not only as an official figure, but also as a Palestinian mother living in the West Bank. Her husband’s family was caught in a trap in Gaza, and her son survived separation from loved ones and forced relocation through violence.
“The gas is again rupturing in parts,” Khalidi said. “An increasing number of its residents are forced to flee the rapidly shrinking parts of the sector’s territory.”
Peaceful residents, according to her, are still forced to leave their homes; they suffer from hunger and are deprived of any protection.
“The world cannot be measured by declarations,” Khalidi said. “It must be measured by the space in which people can live normally.”
She reported that since October 2023, her colleagues and Palestinian partners have provided assistance in Gaza to nearly 1.5 million people. The humanitarian infrastructure, which is essential for restoration, was deliberately destroyed, and reliable humanitarian organizations, including the Middle East Agency for Palestinian Refugee Assistance (MAPRA), are prohibited from carrying out their work.
Khalidi reminded that resolution 2803 was adopted to support the ceasefire regime and regulate the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, but even after seven months these basic goals remain unrealized.
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