The Palestinian Ambassador to Nigeria, H.E. Abdullah Abu Shawesh, has expressed deep concern over the number of civilian casualties in Gaza, which has now risen to several thousand, and over the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza strip.
The Envoy made this known in a statement issued through the State of Palestine’s Embassy in Nigeria, where he condemned the assaults on Gaza’s civilian population and humanitarian personnel, noting that civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict from the outset.
He described the situation in Gaza as “a very dangerous stage,” stating that Israel’s continuous air and ground assaults on the Gaza Strip have caused unparalleled humanitarian crises for the Palestinian people.
“It is now over a month since Israel, the occupying power, has declared its war against the defenseless Palestinian civilians, whom it is obliged to protect under international law. It continues terrorizing them with relentless bombardment, day and night, targeting them, their homes, infrastructure, water reserves, bakeries, mosques, churches, hospitals, ambulances, and schools, all while depriving the entire population of all their basic needs for survival.
“It’s a very dangerous stage, where we have become used to counting the numbers of the slaughtered people, home destructions, injuries, and so on and so forth, without any emotional feeling towards the victims. This means that the people got used to hearing this routine base news and it became worthless as human beings. It’s really a dark stage in human history,” Shawesh said.
His laments included the hundreds of Palestinian deaths in the occupied West Bank since the start of the conflict, as well as the growing toll of casualties and mass displacement throughout the Strip.
He said: “The death toll among the Palestinian in Gaza exceeded 10500, 4800 are children and 2550 are women, while the injured 24808. 2660 still missing under the rubble, 1270 are children. 48 press correspondents were killed in Gaza strip, 163 Palestinians killed in West Bank. According to the UN 70% of the Palestinian people became internally displaced persons. All these are not mere numbers, they are shattered dreams, hopes and aspirations.110 health facilities targeted, 16 hospitals out of service.
“Israel has not stopped threatening hospitals and calling to evacuate it for the purpose of bombing and demolishing it, claiming that the hospitals are refuges and shelters for military groups leaders. Israeli propaganda has no basis in truth at all and comes only from the long-declared Israeli goal of evacuating Gaza. The destruction of universities, hospitals, schools, churches, mosques and all other infrastructure makes Gaza an unlivable area, which will push people to leave even after this war comes to its end.
“UNRWA Commissioner General stated recently, depriving a whole population of items essential for survival is collective punishment. It is a violation of international humanitarian law. The streets of Gaza have started overflowing with sewage, which will cause a massive health hazard very soon
“I visited a school, hosting thousands of displaced persons. The place was overcrowded. The level of distress and the unsanitary living conditions were beyond comprehension. Instead of being at school to learn, children were asking for a sip of water and a loaf of bread.” Hearing this is heartbreaking to any human conscience, and it is beyond my comprehension, how can all this be justified under the pretext of the so called “right to self-defense”.
“In the occupied West Bank, the situation is not less bad, where the Palestinians death toll is at 163. The militant settler’s gangs with the full political support from the Israel minister’s cabinet and full protection by the Israel Occupation Army patrolling the villages, terrorizing the defenseless people, burning their fruit trees, destroying their properties and cutting the main roads between the cities. The Israeli Occupation Force established tens of check points and blocked main villages entrance.
“The number of the Palestinians arrested since October 7th reaches 2200. 1034 subjected to administrative detention orders. 55 women and 145 minors, all of them subjected to torture and inhumation treatments, three of them was killed in the Israel prisons.”
The Ambassador consequently denounced in strong terms what he described as ‘genocide against the Palestinian people,’ calling on the international community to condemn the mistreatment of Palestinians and Israel’s indiscriminate attacks on Gaza’s civilian population.
“It’s has become very clear that the Palestinian narrative dominating the global these days and gained worldwide sympathy and empathy, this has triggered the occupation and its supporters club to call the sacred scarecrow to stifle the decent voices whom are against the genocide, by labeling and depicting them as Anti-Semitic voices and a hate speech spreader, no one should be afraid, raise your voices. It’s the exact time to do so,” Shawesh urged.
