RAMALLAH, January 8, 2026 (WAFA) – The Permanent Representative of Palestine to the United Nations, Ambassador Riyad Mansour, sent three identical letters to the UN Secretary-General, the President of the Security Council for this month (Somalia), and the President of the UN General Assembly, regarding Israel’s continued colonial, racist, and genocidal policies and crimes against the Palestinian people.
Mansour noted that the new year began as the previous one ended, with the continuation of Israeli aggression and colonit attacks, resulting in the killing and injury of Palestinians, the destruction of property, and the forced displacement of more families.
He underscored the escalating campaigns of detentions, including children, noting that the number of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons has risen to over 10,000.
He pointed out that the accelerated pace of settlement construction throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, constitutes a flagrant violation of international law, UN resolutions, and rulings of the International Court of Justice.
He affirmed that this escalation coincides with the intensifying Israeli campaign against UNRWA and international NGOs in the occupied Palestinian territory. He cited recent Israeli legislation and measures, including the cutting of essential services, the confiscation of UN property, and the deregistration of dozens of international NGOs operating in Palestine across various sectors, all aimed at depriving the Palestinian people of support, including the basic necessities for survival, particularly given the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
Mansour also addressed the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip, where most residents remain displaced and suffer from severe shortages of food, water, medicine, and shelter, despite the ceasefire.
"The blockade and closure of crossings, including the Rafah crossing, continue. Meanwhile, the occupying power continues to escalate its illegal policies throughout the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory, through daily military raids, kidnappings, incitement, and attacks by terrorist colonists against civilians," he added.
He highlighted the confiscation of vast areas of Palestinian land, house demolitions, the ethnic cleansing of entire communities, and the construction of more than 3,400 new settlement units. Furthermore, its settlement plans in the E-1 area threaten to sever the northern West Bank from its southern counterpart and further isolate East Jerusalem from its Palestinian surroundings.
Mansour further stressed the need for the international community to condemn all these illegal Israeli actions in occupied Palestine and to take practical measures to stop these crimes, including accountability measures in accordance with international law and United Nations resolutions, including General Assembly Resolution ES-10/24, to compel Israel to comply with international law, respect the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, and end its racist colonial occupation.
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