1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of G77 and China.

2. The Group would like to express its appreciation to ECSWA for preparing the SG's report, as well as for their comprehensive presentation today.

Mr. Chair,

3. The Group welocmes the SG report which underscores that the protracted military occupation of the Palestinian territory and the Syrian Golan continues to profoundly impact all aspects of life for both populations.

4. It also indicates that the ongoing Israeli grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, including, inter alia, the severe destruction of homes and other vital civilian infrastructure, the forcible and repeated displacement, and the unparalleled scale of devastation in Gaza, along with severe restrictions on movement and access, the expansion of illegal settlements and the escalation of settler violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have exacerbated the already-fragile living conditions and threaten their collapse. Such illegal policies and restrictive measures are strangling the Palestinian economy, and severely undermining the social and economic development across Occupied Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip, where almost the entire population has been dispossessed and impoverished.

5. The Group is thus deeply concerned about the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, as a result of Israel's military assaults and blockade, particularly during the past two years, and is equally alarmed by the confirmation of famine in Gaza, for the first time in history, inflicted on the population by the occupying Power's use of starvation as a weapon of war, including by the vast destruction of agricultural lands in Gaza and nearly all food production capacities.

6. Gaza is the most shocking example of Israel's massive violation of the right of the Palestinian people to sovereignty over their natural resources, which the occupation continues to exploit throughout the entirety of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, in breach of international law, the relevant UN resolutions and the ICJ advisory opinion that has determined Israel's presence to be unlawful and that it must be brought to a rapid end.

7. The Group underscores the urgent need for an immediate halt to Israel's violations, including its military attacks and blockade on the Gaza Strip, and for protection of the Palestinian civilian population, in accordance with international humanitarian law, while ensuring their recovery and well-being through immediate, unhindered humanitarian access, including through UNRWA. This necessitates the rapid delivery of assistance at scale, including, inter alia, the provision of food and water to address malnutrition, starvation and famine, medical supplies and expertise, fuel, shelters and school facilities to enable the resumption of education.

8. The Group stresses the importance of strengthening UNRWA and urges States to continue extending political support for the renewal of its mandate and its vital humanitarian and development work. This requires immediate efforts to mobilize sufficient financial support to ensure the continuity of its services, which remain a critical lifeline for Palestine refugees, particularly in Gaza in the midst of humanitarian catastrophe.

9. In closing, we call for decisive and concrete measures to end the illegal Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, in accordance with international law and the relevant UN resolutions, including resolutions 2334, and ES-10/24. Such steps are urgently needed to halt Israel's ongoing crimes and violations of the rights of the Palestinian people and that undermine the two-State Solution, the only viable path to justice and lasting peace for all those living in the region.

10. The Group welcomes, in this regard, the convening of the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, and the adoption of the New York Declaration, and calls for its full implementation towards realizing Palestinian self-determination and the independence of their State, where they can fully exercise all of their rights, including to sovereignty over their natural resources and to development, and determine their own destiny.

I thank you.