UNITED NATIONS: The UN General Assembly held a crucial emergency session on Gaza this Tuesday, addressing a severe humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territory.

The focus was on a draft resolution urging an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, where relentless Israeli attacks have led to the tragic loss of over 18,000 Palestinian lives.

According to the BBC, this is the second time that the UN General Assembly is holding a vote in direct response to the US paralysing the Security Council with its veto.

Commenting on the latest draft, which is much stronger in its language, Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour said he hoped it sends a message to Washington and others “protecting and shielding” Israel.

The text expresses “grave concern over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and the suffering of the Palestinian civilian population,” emphasising the need to protect both Israeli and Palestinian civilians under international law.

Earlier, Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Munir Akram attended an OIC Group meeting for consultations on a joint strategy for the UNGA session.

Dennis Francis, president of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, also met the chairs of the Arab and OIC groups at the UN, along with the ambassadors of Jordan, Qatar, and Palestine, ahead of the emergency session. “I reiterated my full support for all member states-led efforts aimed at achieving a peaceful resolution to the conflict in the Middle East,” he tweeted.

“The people of Gaza have the right to access healthcare,” emphasised WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebre­yesus.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2023