Board of Peace envoy warns Gaza situation remains 'very difficult'
Nickolay Mladenov tells the UN Security Council that essential services are operating at a fraction of capacity while the healthcare system faces total collapse.
A senior Board of Peace official has warned that the situation in Gaza "remains very, very difficult."
"Despite significant improvements through the implementation of phase one, the situation in Gaza remains very, very difficult," said Nickolay Mladenov, high representative for Gaza, Board of Peace, at a UN Security Council session on Palestine.
"Essential services are operating at a fraction of pre-war capacity. The health care system is in collapse. There is no functioning economy."
Outlining three immediate priorities, Mladenov said the first is that "the Rafah crossing must remain open and permit more people to cross in and out of Gaza," warning that "any restriction on its operation directly impedes the implementation of phase two of the ceasefire."
On humanitarian aid, he said the "current flow is not adequate for the scale of need," stressing that "the number of trucks allowed to bring goods into Gaza increases in the immediate future."
He added that "the pipeline is ready, but access must be improved."
He also encouraged accelerating temporary housing solutions, stating that "over 2 million people cannot continue to endure undignified living conditions."
Aid gaps persist
Saying that "no plan is perfect," Mladenov urged full implementation of the ceasefire deal and said it is "the only document that connects decommissioning, reconstruction, civilian transition and the reunification of Palestinian institutions into a single sequence."
"If we are serious about advancing peace between Israelis and Palestinians, then we must be equally serious about implementing this plan," he said.
The United States has also acknowledged that humanitarian efforts remain insufficient.
"Absolutely, more work is needed. We have a long way to go," US envoy Mike Waltz told the same session, adding that Washington is "working daily with our partners across this body to strengthen humanitarian access into and inside of Gaza."
He said more durable housing and health services are needed, noting that while over 4,000 trucks of aid had entered weekly in recent months, those numbers have since declined.