{"id":209795,"date":"2014-08-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T19:49:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?p=209795"},"modified":"2019-03-12T19:49:41","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T19:49:41","slug":"auto-insert-209795","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/auto-insert-209795\/","title":{"rendered":"Secretary-General: Price of Gaza ceasefire &#8220;almost too much to bear&#8221; &#8211; SG&#8217;s Spokesperson&#8217;s noon briefing (excerpts)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\">\n<hr height=\"7px\" \/>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"color:#000000;text-align:center;padding-top:10px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">\n<p style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\"><strong>HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING<br \/>\nBY FARHAN HAQ, DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top:10px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;color:#000000;padding-bottom:10px;text-align:center;\">\n<p style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\"><strong>WEDNESDAY, 6 AUGUST 2014<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"color:#000000;text-align:center;padding-bottom:10px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">\n<p style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\"><strong>SECRETARY-GENERAL: PRICE OF GAZA CEASEFIRE &#8216;ALMOST TOO MUCH TO BEAR&#8217;<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n<ul type=\"disc\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\">\n<li style=\"text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;\"><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">The Secretary-General&#160;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/unispal.un.org\/pdfs\/ECB13ABEE390F6C585257D2C0052EE17.pdf\" style=\"color:#0000ff;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">spoke<\/a><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">&#160;at today&#8217;s informal session of the&#160;<\/span><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">General Assembly<\/span><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">&#160;on Gaza, telling the Member States that it seems that the long-overdue ceasefire there is holding.&#160; For the moment, he said, the near constant firing of Hamas rockets and Israeli missiles and mortars has subsided.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">The Secretary-General added that we cannot rest as the suffering continues.&#160; This ceasefire has come at a price that is almost too much to bear.<\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">He said that we must spare no effort to turn the current calm into a durable ceasefire that addresses the underlying issues of the conflict: ending rocket fire from Gaza, weapons smuggling, opening the crossings, lifting the blockade and bringing Gaza back under one Palestinian Government that accepts and adheres to the PLO commitments.<\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">He also discussed the attacks that hit UN premises and emphasized that the UN flag must be respected and assure protection to those in need. UN shelters must be safe zones, not combat zones.<\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">The Secretary-General thanked UN staff in Gaza for their bravery and sacrifice and paid tribute to the staff members who have died during the conflict. Tomorrow, he said, the UN flag will be flown at half-mast in their memory.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div style=\"color:#000000;text-align:center;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">\n<p style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\"><strong>SENIOR U.N. OFFICIALS SPOTLIGHT IMPACT OF GAZA CONFLICT<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n<ul type=\"disc\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;\">\n<li style=\"text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;\"><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Robert Serry, the UN&#160;<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.unsco.org\/\" style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Special Coordinator<\/a><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">&#160;for the Middle East Peace Process, also briefed the General Assembly today, speaking from Cairo, and he discussed efforts to obtain a prolonged ceasefire. He said that Gaza&#8217;s legal crossings must be opened, in a way that is compatible with Israel&#8217;s security concerns. He also discussed the importance of bringing the Palestinian Authority back to Gaza.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Pierre Kr&#228;henb&#252;hl, the Commissioner General of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), spoke to the Member States from Gaza, and he said that 90 of the Agency&#8217;s premises were hit during the conflict. He said that UNRWA has asked for investigations to be carried out regarding the attacks on Agency-run schools that had been sheltering displaced Gazans.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;\"><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Kyung-hwa Kang, the Assistant Secretary-General for&#160;<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.unocha.org\/\" style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Humanitarian Affairs<\/a><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">, discussed the toll of the conflict, saying that more than 1,800 Palestinians have been killed. Of those identified, at least 1,300 were civilians, including more than 400 children and 200 women. Meanwhile, 64 Israeli soldiers and three civilians have been killed. Ms. Kang added that more than half a million people, or over one quarter of the population of Gaza, were displaced by the conflict.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Navi Pillay, the High Commissioner for&#160;Human Rights, talked about the need for accountability. She said that the conclusions and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry established last month by the Human Rights Council will be presented in March 2015 and should be carefully considered and followed with appropriate action.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;\"><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">Also today, United Nations Development Programme (<\/span><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">UNDP<\/span><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">) Administrator Helen Clark&#160;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/unispal.un.org\/pdfs\/C2033FDA0A99348B85257D2C0064600C.pdf\" style=\"color:#0000ff;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">said<\/a><span style=\"color:#000000;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;\">&#160;that her organization&#8217;s immediate priorities include removing rubble, restoring solid waste systems, rebuilding homes and creating jobs and livelihoods.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div style=\"color:#000000;text-align:left;padding-bottom:5px;font-size:10pt;font-family:Times New Roman, serif;margin-left:20px;\">\n\t\t\t\t\/&#8230;\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ, DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON WEDNESDAY, 6 AUGUST 2014 SECRETARY-GENERAL: PRICE OF GAZA CEASEFIRE &#8216;ALMOST TOO MUCH TO BEAR&#8217; The Secretary-General&#160;spoke&#160;at today&#8217;s informal session of the&#160;General Assembly&#160;on Gaza, telling the Member States that it seems that the long-overdue ceasefire there is holding.&#160; For the moment, he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/auto-insert-209795\/\"> [&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"country":[],"document-category":[2197,2573],"document-source":[1365,1825,5352,2325,1817,1877],"committee-meeting":[],"document-subject":[1769,1829,2005,2533,1741,5200,1857,2613,2349,3589,2309,2385,2729],"entity":[1729],"document-language":[6542],"class_list":["post-209795","document","type-document","status-publish","hentry","document-category-briefing","document-category-highlights-of-the-noon-briefing","document-source-general-assembly","document-source-office-of-the-united-nations-high-commissioner-for-human-rights-ohchr","document-source-secretary-general","document-source-united-nations-development-programme-undp","document-source-united-nations-relief-and-works-agency-for-palestine-refugees-in-the-near-east-unrwa","document-source-united-nations-special-coordinator-for-the-middle-east-peace-process-unsco","document-subject-armed-conflict","document-subject-casualties","document-subject-gaza-strip","document-subject-health","document-subject-human-rights-and-international-humanitarian-law","document-subject-humanitarian-relief","document-subject-incidents","document-subject-internally-displaced-persons","document-subject-living-conditions","document-subject-population","document-subject-protection","document-subject-security-issues","document-subject-shelter","entity-united-nations-system","document-language-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/209795","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/document"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/209795\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=209795"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"document-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-category?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"document-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-source?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"committee-meeting","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/committee-meeting?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"document-subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-subject?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"entity","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/entity?post=209795"},{"taxonomy":"document-language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-language?post=209795"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}