Oxfam: UNSC’s failure to call for a ceasefire “utterly callous”

In reaction to the UN Security Council’s passing of a watered-down resolution instead of calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, Oxfam Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Sally Abi-Khalil, said:

“The failure to call for a ceasefire after five days of deliberate delays and dilutions of the resolution is incomprehensible and utterly callous. It is a profound dereliction of duty from an organization established to uphold the UN Charter to maintain peace and protect lives.  

“It actively denies over two million Palestinians – many of whom are now starving as a risk of famine looms – a respite from the relentless bombardment and siege they have endured for nearly two and half months.  

“An immediate and permanent ceasefire is the only way to deliver humanitarian aid at the scale and speed urgently needed, end the horrendous loss of life and ensure the safe return of hostages.

The US’s removal of calls to suspend hostilities shows just how out of touch its policies are with the urgency and terror that Palestinians are experiencing. Its actions in the Security Council demonstrate the US’s increased isolation from the global consensus.”

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Notes to editors

The latest IPC’s Gaza Report stated that between 24 November and 4 December 2023, over 90 per cent of the population in Gaza experienced crisis or worse levels of food insecurity.  

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