Ceasefire in Gaza cannot wait another day - Guyana tells UN

Ceasefire in Gaza cannot wait another day – Guyana tells UN

Feb 02, 2024 News

Guyana’s Ambassador to the UN, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett

By Shervin Belgrave

Kaieteur News – Guyana on Thursday assumed the Presidency for the United Nations (UN) Security Council and continued its call for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Gaza.

“We believe that we should not wait another day for that,” Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett said. Rodrigues- Birkett was at the time responding to questions from journalists at a press briefing. One of them asked if there is any chance of getting a much needed ceasefire in Gaza under Guyana’s presidency of the UN Security Council for the month February. The ambassador acknowledged that a resolution drafted by Algeria for yet another ceasefire is currently being discussed by the council and related that Guyana will be taking a constructive approach.

She said too that the UN is quite concerned that a recent drone attack on a Small United States Base in Jordan that left three American soldiers dead could further escalate the war in the Middle East after US President Joe Biden threatened to respond. Nevertheless, Rodrigues-Birkett made it clear during the press briefing that Guyana has called for a ceasefire and will continue to do so.

Ruble left behind following and Israeli Bomb attack on Gaza

On Wednesday it was reported widely that Algeria, a nonpermanent member of the U.N. Security Council, has requested a council meeting to enforce an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling regarding Israel and hinted that it will call for ceasefire in a draft Resolution. The ICJ did not order a ceasefire but ruled that Israel must take must steps to prevent genocidal acts. Other measures include punishing incitement to Genocide and immediately enabling humanitarian relief in the Gaza Strip.

The council meeting was convened later that day and Roddrigues-Birkett during a statement urged swift resolution of the situation to benefit those in need of assistance and emphasised that a ceasefire should be the first important step.

She also stressed the importance of complying with the recent ICJ measures and implementing all provisions conducive to achieving a two-state solution. “Following developments in the war and listening to the briefings by UN agencies…one may be moved to wonder whether a bounty exists on the head of every Palestinian child, man or woman”, Rodrigues-Birkett said while adding that although some Palestinians managed bombs and bullets, they still “face the dire prospect of death from starvation or disease”. “Can the Council keep silent in these circumstances? Of course not! The international community, and this Council in particular, must spare no effort to end this cycle of bloodshed”, she continued.

Meanwhile, Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo at his weekly party press-conference on Thursday said that his Government is pleased with the ICJ’s ruling on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and hopes that Israel would comply with measures ordered by the court.

A genocide case against Israel was brought before the ICJ on December 29, 2023 by South Africa. The ICJ gave its ruling on the case almost a month later on January 26, 2023. The court did not grant South Africa’s key request for a ceasefire in the region but rejected Israel’s request to throw out the genocide case. It found that there is a plausible “imminent risk” that Palestinians require protection and concluded that Gaza’s population was “extremely vulnerable. The court reportedly acknowledged too that some of the emergency measures sought by South Africa were essential to preserving Palestinian rights. Since the beginning of the war on October 7, it has reportedly displaced about 1.9 million people of Gaza’s 2.3 million population. More than 25,700 people have also been killed in the Israeli assault, mostly women and children.

Carolyn Rodrigues, Cease fire, Gaza Strip, Israeli Palestinian conflict, Shervin Belgrave

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