Senior United Nations Official Warns Second Committee of Catastrophic Destruction in Gaza, Escalating Israeli Settlement Activity

Senior United Nations Official Warns Second Committee of Catastrophic Destruction in Gaza, Escalating Israeli Settlement Activity

Escalating Israeli settler activity in the Palestinian territories and the Syrian Golan, along with the destruction of resources in Gaza represent an unprecedented catastrophe reversing “77 years of human development”, a senior United Nations official warned the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today as it took up the issue of those lands. Youssef Chaitani, Chief of the Economic Affairs Section in the Governance and Prevention Cluster of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), introduced the report on “Economic and social repercussions of the Israeli occupation on the living conditions of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan” (document A/81/111-E/2026/77). While the ceasefire of 10 October 2025 “remained fragile but continued to hold”, he noted that Israeli military operations have continued.

More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed and “in the Gaza Strip, 77 years of human development have been reversed”. In the West Bank, settler violence reached its highest level since 2006, while as of March 2026, over 9,500 Palestinians were reportedly in Israeli prisons, many without charge or trial. In Gaza, nearly 1.9 million people — 90 per cent of the population — have been repeatedly displaced, “many more than 10 times”, depending “almost entirely on humanitarian assistance”.

In a “high rate” of Israeli settlement activity, he cited plans for 10,000 housing units in East Jerusalem and more than 26,640 in Area C, with 925 movement obstacles recorded across the West Bank as of December 2025. In Gaza, the gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 84 per cent in 2025 compared to 2023, with GDP per capita falling to approximately $161 — “less than 50 cents a day” — while unemployment in the Occupied Palestinian Territory reached 46 per cent. Meanwhile, around 31,000 Israeli settlers live across some 35 settlements in the occupied Syrian Golan.

Calling for “urgent and sustained action to address” the catastrophic situation, he stressed: “Humanitarian aid is not negotiable,” further underscoring that “a lasting and comprehensive peace can only be achieved through a negotiated two-State solution”. In response, the representative of Israel cited the reference to a few decades of development being destroyed, noting “you never said why, what happened that led to this destruction. What happened maybe three years ago?” Pointing out that “Hamas is never mentioned” in the report, he stated “ESCWA [Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia] is really a disgrace for this organization”.

With the floor opened for debate, speakers reaffirmed the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan to their natural resources. The observer for the State of Palestine noted that every year, the Secretary-General’s report “documents an increasingly grave reality marked by the unprecedented scale and severity of Israeli crimes and violations, including the systematic exploitation and destruction of Palestine’s natural resources, all with impunity”. In Gaza, the devastation extends far beyond buildings and infrastructure, with “irreversible damage inflicted on the natural resource base required for Gaza’s survival and recovery”.

The soil is poisoned and nearly all homes have been destroyed, with only 3 per cent of agricultural land undamaged. Some 57 million tons of debris have been unleashed — “not just the destruction of what exists today”, but what “generations of Palestinians” will depend on “to rebuild their future tomorrow”, he warned. Calling upon States to prohibit imports “from illegal Israeli settlements”, he emphasized that Palestine cannot harness its natural resources while “Israeli impunity persists”.

Libya’s delegate, speaking for the Arab Group, condemned the “assault that has continued for three years”, under which all basic services “have ceased” in an “unprecedented catastrophe”. Welcoming measures by some States to reject violations, he called on the international community to “take practical tangible measures” and “hold Israel accountable for its crimes”. The representative of the Russian Federation noted that the annual meeting “unfortunately remains fully relevant”.

While the attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023 “are completely unjustified”, there is no justification for “the collective punishment of all of the Gazan civilians”. China’s delegate affirmed that “Palestine is the homeland of all Palestinians, who have the right to statehood” and peaceful development while calling for “long-overdue redress for historical injustices.” Iran’s representative noted that Gaza’s economy contracted by 84 per cent in 2025 with recovery needs estimated at $71.4 billion. Jordan’s delegate noted that “700,000 children in Gaza have been deprived of education as a result of the destruction of schools and the deaths of thousands of students and teachers”.

Many delegates, including those of Kuwait, Oman and Yemen, denounced the exploitation of resources, with the representative of Uruguay, speaking for the Group of 77 and China, voicing alarm at “the vast destruction of agricultural lands in Gaza and nearly all food production capacities”. Israeli military assaults “have inflicted severe and potentially irreversible damage to the natural resource base upon which the Palestinian population depends”. The representatives of Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, speaking for the Gulf Cooperation Council, condemned escalating settlement activity in the West Bank and Syrian Golan, including the planned E-1 settlement.

Syria’s delegate noted that Israel’s incursion is undermining efforts to provide “favourable conditions for the return of refugees”. Israel’s Government also has a plan to transform the first Syrian town in the occupied Golan, while Israeli violations in southern Syria “are targeting the environment and we will need hundreds of years to make up for this damage”. Qatar’s representative rejected any efforts “to change the demographic and legal status of the Golan”.

Meanwhile, Cuba’s delegate denounced “the criminal complicity of the United States”, whose sustained support perpetuates the impunity of the occupying Power, adding: “Reconstruction of Gaza is no replacement for a just political solution.” The representative of Egypt condemned “using hunger as a weapon of war”. Egypt continues its effort with partners to implement the Sharm el Sheikh peace plan, “to achieve stability, end the bloodshed and suffering”, and create conditions for peace while guaranteeing humanitarian access. South Africa’s delegate called for “full respect for international law including UN resolutions and opinions and decisions of the International Court of Justice”.

The representative of Saudi Arabia noted his Government established the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.