Madam President,
The United States government has once again blocked, through its abuse of the veto privilege in the Security Council, the efforts of the international community to put an end to the massacre perpetrated by Israel in Gaza. It thus confirms its historical complicity with the occupying power and guarantees impunity for genocide, extermination, ethnic cleansing, collective punishment, and apartheid, all of which are crimes against humanity.
Far from contributing to international peace and security, which is the very purpose of that UN body, it contributes through its veto to the perpetuation of Zionist barbarism against the Palestinian people and is also responsible for it.
It calls into question the supposed intention of fair mediation to reach a permanent and lasting ceasefire agreement. The sustained political, military, logistical, and financial support of the United States for Israel is a clear expression of the double standards and bias that characterize U.S. policy.
So too are the recent visit to Israel by the U.S. Secretary of State in support of the crime, and the intention to silence the voice of our Palestinian brothers and sisters in this universal forum. The unilateral and arbitrary decision to revoke and deny visas to members of the Palestinian delegation, which prevented their proper participation in the High-Level Segment of the 80th Session of this General Assembly, violates the 1947 Headquarters Agreement.
Fifteen Palestinians die every day from malnutrition, 12 of them children, hostages of a colonial operation, settlement and forced displacement from the territory that belongs to them. It is estimated that at least 132,000 children under the age of 5 suffer from acute malnutrition and more than 43,000 are at risk of dying. The total number of confirmed deaths due to Israeli aggression in the Gaza Strip alone since October 7, 2023, stands at 66,148, with an additional 168,716 wounded and maimed.
It is unacceptable that Israel continues to use hunger, food distribution, and humanitarian aid as weapons of war. Depriving a besieged civilian population of water, electricity, medicine, and fuel is not a military strategy, but a crime against humanity, collective punishment, and genocide.
The Israeli government’s disregard for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, international law, international humanitarian law, and the international community’s calls for peace has also guided its attacks on other countries in the Middle East, such as Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Yemen. The most recent case, the violation of the sovereignty of the State of Qatar, a nation that has played a constructive role in mediation efforts, is yet another example of the Zionist regime’s aggression against neighboring states.
An immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces are urgently needed. Israel must allow sufficient humanitarian aid to enter without conditions or restrictions and must authorize the indispensable work of UNRWA.
Cuba reaffirms its commitment and support for the Palestinian cause and reiterates its firm condemnation of the genocide perpetrated by Israel in Gaza, with the aim of exterminating or expelling the population of that occupied territory.
It reaffirms its conviction that only through a two-state solution, with the creation of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, guaranteeing the right of return for refugees, can a just and lasting peace be achieved.
The agreements and commitments reached during the High-Level International Conference on the Implementation of the Two-State Solution must be implemented without delay.
It is time to admit Palestine as a full member of this Organization. If the Security Council, powerless in the face of the abuse of the irritating privilege of the veto, persists in imposing itself as an obstacle to that aspiration, this General Assembly, as the most universal and representative body of the international community, must declare that right unequivocally and single out those who prevent it with the utmost political rigor.
The General Assembly can do more. The Assembly has the power to declare Israel’s genocide and apartheid for what they are: crimes against humanity. It can urge Member States to impose an arms embargo on Israel and exclude that country from participation in international organizations and conferences under the auspices of the United Nations.
It must demand the opening of all border crossings, entry points, and humanitarian corridors to ensure safe and unrestricted humanitarian access under the direct supervision of the UN, and urge States in a position to do so to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian population.
To that end, in light of other proposals and the impotence of the Security Council, a resumed session of the 10th emergency special session of the General Assembly must be convened urgently, at which a comprehensive set of measures can be analyzed and approved by majority vote to put an end to the inaction of the United Nations.
The Palestinian cause is not only a pending political issue, it is the litmus test for the credibility of the multilateral system, it is the litmus test for the UN’s ability to defend the purposes and principles for which it was founded, precisely on the 80th anniversary of its creation.
Thank you very much.