UN official's double standards after Gaza trip draw backlash, censure
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The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process has released a statement in which he recounted his visit to Gaza without naming "Israel" as an aggressor or occupier.
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A boy pushes a wheelchair carrying water containers past the rubble of destroyed buildings along a street in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on July 8, 2024. (AFP)
The Israeli aggression on Gaza continues for the 333th day and the number of Palestinians killed since October 7 has risen to 40,819 and those injured 94,291, the Gaza Health Ministry confirmed on Sunday.
In its daily report, the Ministry mentioned that Israeli occupation forces committed three massacres in Gaza, killing 33 people and injuring 67 others in the past 24 hours.
Earlier today, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that two Palestinians have been killed in Israeli airstrikes targeting forcibly displaced people's tents west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
Despite this harsh reality, although the aforementioned is only a glance of it, Tor Wennesland, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, found it appropriate to release a statement on Monday in which he recounted his visit to Gaza without addressing the main cause of the complete destruction in the Strip.
Wennesland pointed to UN agencies and their commitments, lamented the death of Israeli captives, and blamed it all on Palestinian "armed groups" rather than relentless Israeli strikes.
He called the genocide in Gaza an "ongoing conflict" and warned that it should end, without mentioning the occupation of the land or the brutal Israeli massacres that have yet to end.
Today, I returned to #Gaza and witnessed firsthand the catastrophic impact of the hostilities. The scale of destruction is immense, the humanitarian needs are colossal and soaring, and civilians continue to bear the brunt of this conflict.
— Tor Wennesland (@TWennesland) September 2, 2024
Read my full statement 👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/iPcFzRkZ6h
Wennesland's statements drew harsh condemnations and backlash from former UN officials and others.
Craig Mokhiber, a human rights lawyer and former UN diplomat, blasted him for releasing a statement without a "whisper about Israel’s genocide in Palestine? You condemn the “death toll” in Gaza but don’t utter the name of the victims (say it, Tor, “Palestinians”), or the name of the killers (say it, Tor, “Israel”)."
Mokhiber noted how Wennesland blamed "Palestinian armed groups" for the death of Israeli captives and ignored the tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians killed by "Israel". Furthermore, he underscored the diplomat's double standards calling for a captive agreement but making no mention of the thousands of "innocents being brutalized in Israeli dungeons."
Mokhiber concluded by expressing "deep regret" over the UN abandoning Gaza, "its own suffering staff, and the principles of the Organization."
Really, Tor? Almost a year in and you still speak of “conflict,” with not a whisper about Israel’s genocide in Palestine? You condemn the “death toll” in Gaza but don’t utter the name of the victims (say it, Tor, “Palestinians”), or the name of the killers (say it, Tor,…
— Craig Mokhiber (@CraigMokhiber) September 3, 2024
Mouin Rabbani, a Dutch-Palestinian Middle East analyst specializing in Palestinian affairs, responded on X to Wennesland, questionning why the UN would keep a diplomat employed if he could not even "muster the courage to even mention Israel by name and amidst more than 40,000 killings condemns only the killings of six Israelis," accusing him of overstepping "moral and political cowardice. It is shameful, shameless complicity."
What’s the point of retaining a UN diplomat on the payroll who, visiting Gaza for the first time in months, cannot muster the courage to even mention Israel by name and amidst more than 40,000 killings condemns only the killings of six Israelis. This goes beyond moral and… https://t.co/0RntvjVhPl
— Mouin Rabbani (@MouinRabbani) September 2, 2024
On her end, Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur also blasted Mokhiber for his poor choice of words, citing that what he witnessed was not the "impact of the hostilities" but rather a "genocide".
I am afraid that what you just saw in Gaza is not just the "impact of the hostilties", but rather what the #genocide of a people trapped in a XXI century ghetto looks like.
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) September 3, 2024
"To name things wrongly is to add to the misfortune of the world" (A. Camus).
UN official urges prevention of Gaza-like tragedy in West Bank
Earlier, Francesca Albanese raised concerns about the potential for Gaza's tragedy to be repeated in the occupied West Bank. Albanese warned on Tuesday that "Israel’s" genocidal violence might extend beyond Gaza to the entire occupied territory.
“Apartheid Israel is targeting Gaza and the West Bank simultaneously, as part of an overall process of elimination, replacement and territorial expansion,” Albanese stated.
“The writing is on the wall, and we cannot continue to ignore it. There is mounting evidence that no Palestinian is safe under Israel’s unfettered control. While this was also true before Hamas’ attack on 7 October, the risk has since intensified,” she further added.
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— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) September 2, 2024
the
writing
on
the
wall. #StopTheGenocide https://t.co/mQuKAiA1fy
She cautioned that the longstanding impunity granted to "Israel" is facilitating the "de-Palestinisation" of the occupied territory, leaving Palestinians vulnerable to forces intent on their elimination as a national group. Earlier in August, Albanese had emphasized that "Israel's" crimes had been documented and called for accountability.
Since October 7, 2023, Israeli occupation forces have continued their assault on the Gaza Strip by land, sea, and air. It is worth noting that the death toll remains provisional, as rescue teams are still unable to reach thousands of victims trapped under rubble and in the streets.
