COLOMBO : The National Unity Alliance (NUA) has expressed its concerns over the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Rafah, southern Gaza, following the seizure and closure of the Rafah border crossing last Tuesday (7th May), sealing the crucial entry point for all humanitarian aid into the besieged territory.
In a press statement , NUA leader Azath Salley pointed out that the Israeli military has escalated its attacks in Rafah, and hit Gaza City while crippling humanitarian aid operations across the Palestinian territory, as ceasefire talks ended without a deal.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said on Friday (10th May) that 110,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah, where over 1.4 million of Gaza’s estimated 2.2 million inhabitants have been forcibly displaced since Israel started its offensive in Gaza in October last year.
Sam Rose, Director of Planning for the UNRWA said Israel was subjecting Gaza to a “medieval siege” in a “scorched earth” war. Under heavy attack, patients and staff have been forced out of hospitals in Rafah, leaving many sick and wounded Palestinians with no way of being treated.
At least 35,000 people have been killed, of which over 70% are women and children, with more than 79,000 others wounded in relentless Israeli bombardments and military attacks on Gaza since 7th October 2023. The ongoing Israeli offensive against defenceless Palestinian civilians is bound to lead to a second Nakba (Catastrophe) for the Palestinians who had been forcibly evicted from their homeland since the creation of Israel in 1948.
The NUA, mindful of Israel’s scant and callous disregard and utter contempt for international law and international humanitarian law, urgently calls upon the international community collectively and all self-respecting and law abiding states individually to take the following measures, which would compel Israel to immediately halt its offensive military operations in Gaza, leading to a permanent ceasefire, the release of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons and detention centres, without trial or due process, as well as hostages held by Hamas.
- An immediate embargo on weapons and military sales to Israel.
- A UN enforced No-Fly Zone over Gaza and other Occupied Palestinian territories.
- An economic boycott of Israel, by way of ending trade with Israel and discouraging any investments in and from Israel.
- A political boycott of Israel, calling upon states to sever diplomatic relations or downgrade ties with Israel.
- Cultural and sports boycott of Israel.
The NUA believes that only concerted action by the collective international community, encompassing one or more of the above measures would result in isolating Israel and forcing it to halt its barbaric assault on Gaza.
It may be pertinent to recall that only such actions by the vast majority of nations resulted in the end of Apartheid in South Africa in the early 1990s and the emergence of a free and democratic nation.
The NUA is of the view that Israel has been able to carry out flagrant violations of international law, invading and attacking neigbouring states and suppressing the rights of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, due to the blanket impunity it has received from Western nations. However, the situation has dramatically changed today, with public opinion in most Western nations firmly opposed to Israel’s colonial settler apartheid policies, as exemplified by the dehumanisation of the loss of lives of Palestinians in the ongoing genocidal military siege and assault on Gaza.”
Meanwhile, the NUA takes this opportunity to express its sincere thanks and profound appreciation to the Government of Sri Lanka, which joined 142 like-minded countries in the 193 member UN General Assembly yesterday (10th May) to vote in favour and adopt a Resolution that “determines that the State of Palestine…. should therefore be admitted to membership” and it “recommends that the Security Council reconsider the matter favourably”.Azath Salley, concluded
