I thank Deputy Special Coordinator Alakbarov, High Representative Mladenov, and Director Hijjo for their briefings.
And let me express our condolences for the brave Red Crescent colleagues who have been tragically killed.
President, six months ago, this Council adopted Resolution 2803, which offered an opportunity to turn the page on years of bloodshed and move towards peace.
Thanks to the efforts of the United States, Türkiye, Egypt, and Qatar, we have seen important progress, including the return of all hostages and a significant reduction in violence.
However, the promise of the 20-point plan has yet to be fully realised, and the parties must do much more.
Over 850 civilians have been killed since the ceasefire in October, the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains catastrophic, and the implementation of the 20-point plan is being undermined by the trajectory in the West Bank.
I will highlight three priority areas to unlock progress.
First, maintaining momentum on the security transition in Gaza is vital.
The United Kingdom supports a phased and verified decommissioning process, deployment of an International Stabilisation Force, and the training of a Palestinian police force, alongside a sequenced IDF withdrawal.
Under the 20-point plan, Hamas has agreed to decommission its weapons and destroy military and terror infrastructure.
It must now make good on that commitment and engage constructively in negotiations as set out by Mr Mladenov.
Second, urgent steps must be taken by Israel to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Children are living amid sewage, parasites, and disease.
We are horrified by the images of newborn babies with rat bites on their faces.
And the UN reports widespread infestations are now affecting almost 1.5 million people.
The Israeli government’s indefensible restrictions on the entry of essential humanitarian equipment and supplies are making it impossible to provide minimum sanitation and water standards.
Resolution 2803 is absolutely clear. There must be full resumption of humanitarian aid, including rehabilitation of civilian infrastructure. This must take place now and must never be used as a political lever.
The United Nations, including UNRWA, as well as International NGOs must be able to operate with unrestricted humanitarian access in all of Gaza, in line with Israel’s obligations under international law.
I also recall my Foreign Secretary’s condemnation of the video posted by Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir taunting those involved in the Global Sumud Flotilla.
This violates the most basic standards of respect and dignity in the way people should be treated.
Third, President, we need to invest in Palestinian-led recovery and reconstruction across all of Gaza, with cooperation between the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, the Palestinian Authority, and the UN to help the people of Gaza rebuild after two devastating years of conflict.
And finally, we must not lose sight of the West Bank.
We condemn Minister Smotrich’s orders to forcefully evict Khan al‑Ahmar and we oppose any such attempts to remove Palestinians from their land.
Settlement expansion, including the E1 plan, must stop.
This will do nothing for Israel’s security or for long-term peace.
We also reject Israel’s unacceptable plans to build on the UNRWA site in East Jerusalem, and remind Israel of its obligation to respect the inviolability of UN premises.
President, the United Kingdom has acted in defence of the two-state solution before, and we will not hesitate to do so again.
It is now up to the parties, with the support of the international community, to seize this historic opportunity to agree a political horizon which overcomes the suffering of the past and delivers a better future for Palestinians and Israelis.
This means upholding the ceasefire and taking concrete action to implement the 20-point plan, in full and at pace.
