YouSaid · the spoken record

Hary

lines on the record: 24
first: 2019-11-20
most recent: 2023-05-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The international community has a particularly important role to play in bringing the closure — a persistent and pernicious injustice and form of collective punishment — to an end. Finally, I ask the Council not to let another military assault put Gaza and Palestine back on the agenda, but to put it there because members know that it is the right thing to do.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“People around the world also realize that the struggle for freedom and dignity cannot be suppressed forever, not with the highest walls or the strongest armies. I would like to end with four recommendations. First, let the hopes of Gaza’s young people guide Council members as they consider bold actions that their Governments might take. There is no reason not to facilitate the freedom of movement that women and young people need to fulfil their dreams. Secondly, we must protect the space for humanitarian and human rights work in Israel and in Palestine. In a situation of rising extremism, civil society is critical. Thirdly, we must recall the crisis of accountability. As a matter of routine, Palestinians are punished for actions beyond their control.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“An agenda that prioritizes women and peace and security must take into account the impact of the closure on the specific needs of women. Gisha represents a minority view in Israel, but we are part of a vibrant civil society in Israel and in Palestine under increasing threat. Our allies and potential allies are being silenced by false accusations of anti-Semitism, which undermine the necessary fight against the real and dangerous forms of anti-Semitism growing around the world. This is a critical time for the Council’s leadership and courage, as extremism in our region is feeding on incitement, poverty and oppression. What gives me hope are the many young people in Gaza who dare to dream of a better future and know they deserve it, despite the leaders around them who are failing them.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“Access via Egypt is more possible than in previous years, but Egypt does not connect Gaza to the West Bank and Israel. It is as if New York City were cut off from the rest of the state and the states around it, for decades. Recently, more movement has also been possible via Erez, the pedestrian crossing between Gaza and Israel, but for one category only: Palestinian day labourers. More than 140,000 people applied for a 20,000-permit quota, before registration was closed. That means that less than 1 per cent of demand in Gaza is being met with those permits. Women in Gaza are not included in that 1 per cent. Their needs for professional access continue to go unacknowledged in Israel’s criteria for permits.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“Movement between Gaza, Israel and the West Bank is barred other than in exceptional circumstances. Israel faces legitimate security challenges, but movement restrictions are not in place for security needs alone. They drive political goals to pressure the population and maintain control over the West Bank. Most importantly, Israel’s narrow interpretation of its obligations towards Palestinians creates a crisis of accountability. Settlements and the separation policy are two sides of the same coin — the same push towards annexation of the West Bank. Isolating Gaza, or the Gaza Bantustan, as the Palestinian human rights organization Al Mezan Center for Human Rights coined it, fragments Palestinians and reinforces the disastrous Palestinian political division.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“Half of them are children, and nearly 70 per cent are under the age of 30. Young people in Gaza know no other reality than closure and war. Most of the population has never been out of the Strip. Unemployment is 46 per cent, and among young people it is 68 per cent. Some 80 per cent of children in Gaza are said to suffer from emotional distress. Children and their parents know the names of all six children who were killed in the most recent military campaign. The wounds that cannot be seen — the trauma, hopelessness and helplessness — are the hardest to heal. How can the situation possibly contribute to security? Real, sustainable security and deterrence are not created by force, they are created by hope. The closure of Gaza is part of what Israel calls the separation policy.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“That level of control creates responsibility. This was the sixth major Israel military attack in Gaza, among hundreds of smaller campaigns, over the past 15 years. Our former Minister of Defence referred to it as “mowing the lawn”. Officials say things, such as “we have no choice but to manage the situation” because “there is no solution”. True leadership would work tirelessly to create hope instead of surrendering to perpetual occupation, recurrent military attacks, rocket fire from Gaza and other travesties. As in previous rounds, Israeli officials said they were protecting Israeli citizens from rocket fire. I am one of those citizens. I do not wish the reality of rocket fire on anyone. The question should be: what do we need to do to break that cycle? Today 2.2 million people live in the Gaza Strip.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“In 2022, one third of patients’ permit applications and 62 per cent of companions’ permit applications were delayed or denied. One quarter of patients exited the Strip without a companion, including hundreds of children without their parents. Closure means that if your mother in the West Bank is sick, you have to prove to the Israeli military that she is at risk of death in order to hope to get a permit that will be valid only three to five days, at most. It means that if you want to start a company in Gaza, most likely all the equipment, machinery and raw materials you would need are considered by Israel to be dual-use. Getting those items can take months or even years, and sometimes it is impossible. In those and hundreds of other ways, Israel’s decisions continue to have a deep impact on every aspect of life in Gaza.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“Tel Aviv and Jerusalem have returned to normal. Diplomats have moved on and are dealing with other priorities. Gaza has also returned to normal, but for Gaza, normal means Israeli drones buzzing overhead at all hours and the familiar cycle of destruction, reconstruction, mourning and trauma. Between the wars, when Gaza is out of the headlines and fewer people are paying attention, the ongoing warfare of movement restrictions continues. Security Council members regularly call for the lifting of those movement restrictions, and those calls are vital and must continue. But what do systemic movement restrictions look like on the ground? What does closure really mean? Closure means that people are likely to wait for weeks or even months to get a permit to go from Gaza to Jerusalem to access life-saving medical treatment.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“Ms. Hary: My name is Tania Hary, and I am the executive director of Gisha. We are an Israeli human rights organization that promotes the freedom of movement and other rights that are dependent on it, especially in the Gaza Strip. Gisha means “access” and “approach” in Hebrew. Gisha was founded in 2005 in response to Israel’s removal of its settlements and military installations from the Gaza Strip because we knew that Israel’s occupation there was not ending. Eighteen years later, Israel’s control persists, particularly over movement and access; over the Palestinian population registry determining where people can live and over Gaza’s electricity supply, communications network and air and sea spaces. I am here today, just a week and a half after a ceasefire agreement was reached following yet another escalation in the region.”
2023-05-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9328 (2023) · source
“To conclude, the international community has a claim, a moral responsibility and a vested interest to pursue peace and, with it, accountability for rights violations. If nothing else, the desire of some to undermine the foundations on which this institution, the United Nations, rests should be a loud wake-up call and should unite the international community in action. Young people in Israel and in Palestine will be grateful for it.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“A vibrant community of civil-society organizations operates in both Israel and Palestine, but we and our allies are targeted for our work. We are outraged at the expected deportation of our Human Rights Watch colleague Omar Shakir, but as much as these actions are cause for concern, I believe that they are also an indication of our growing influence. Many people in Israel may see my appearance here today as an act of disloyalty, because we have been taught that it is a zero-sum game, that it is us or them. In fact, it is just the opposite: the well-being of Israelis and Palestinians is interlinked, and we should address Palestinian security just as much as we do Israeli security.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“It is the result of deliberate choices made by policymakers - Israeli but also Palestinian and regional actors, as well as the international community, which has helped keep the people's heads above water with the critical aid that it provides but must leverage its influence for more sustainable change. Given recent statements by Israeli officials and their supporters and the current American Administration, I do not think that we can delude ourselves that a peace process isjust around the corner. In the absence ofpeace and also to catalyse it, the international community must confront the de facto annexation of the West Bank together with the isolation of Gaza, taking action to reverse these trends by abiding by its obligation to protect civilians. It should also provide support to civil society.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Israel must improve access to medical care and also access for companions of patients, including parents, who are routinely denied permits to accompany their children to treatment. Israel must allow safe and reliable access to Gaza's sea and farmland. Egypt has operated the Rafah crossing consistently since May 2018, allowing many to travel abroad. It should be encouraged to continue and expand operations. The Palestinian authorities should refrain from leveraging the critical services needed by the civilian population in their factional dispute, including electricity supply and health care. I also believe that the two Israeli civilians allegedly held in Gaza should be released immediately as a humanitarian imperative. The humanitarian and economic situation in Gaza is not an act of nature.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Since 2014, we have seen the rate of exit of goods from Gaza increase, but it remains a fraction of what it could be. Restrictions could be lifted on the types of goods that can exit and to which destinations. Also vital for industry, construction and civilian infrastructure is the entry of building and other raw materials, which remain heavily restricted by Israel's broad definition Organizationf what constitutes dual-use items. When it comes to the movement of people, Israel must remove obstacles on people travelling to reunite with family and to reach jobs and other professional opportunities, especially women, who, as I noted, are disproportionately denied access.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“In the absence of self-determination, millions of Palestinians cannot vote for the Government with so much power over their lives and different legal standards are applied to people literally living side by side. The situation cannot be anything other than cause for further instability not only in the region, but also in some of the capitals of Council member States. The erosion of norms entailed in maintaining the occupation undermines the universal values of security and human rights on which this very institution was founded. So, what can be done? First, access - rather than allowing the minimum access necessary to prevent further crises, we believe that the international community should insist that Israel allow the maximum access possible, subject only to necessary and reasonable security procedures.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“I am certain that many Council members will want to make statements today reaffirming the illegality of the settlements and citing that they are a primary obstacle to peace. I encourage them to note that the isolation of Gaza is also a primary obstacle, aggravated certainly by Palestinian division but also driven by deliberate choices on the part of Israel. In March this year, in defending his decision to allow funds from Qatar to enter the Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was cited as saying that whoever is against a Palestinian State should be for transferring the funds to Gaza, because maintaining a separation between the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas helps prevent the establishment of a Palestinian State.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“It actually gives me no joy to expose the senselessness and even the cruelty of decisions made daily, ostensibly in my name. In 2018, Gisha was contacted by a man in Gaza whose father in the West Bank had suffered a debilitating stroke. His urgent application for a permit went unanswered for two months until the army responded that the father was "not sick enough to justify a visit". Two petitions to the District Court and an appeal to the High Court were unsuccessful. Security had nothing to do with it. These stories are not just the unfortunate by-product of conflict; they are an expression of Israel's intent to maintain control of the West Bank while locking out Palestinians in Gaza.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Only four 4 all men - received permits, while the State claimed that "women played too minor of a role in the economy" to be relevant to discussions about improving economic activity. If you are a woman in Gaza, you are less likely to meet Israel's criteria for work-related travel. Our own field coordinator was also blocked - he and other human rights defenders do not meet the criteria for travel. We recently represented a company in Gaza wishing to sell its cookies in the West Bank, but an ongoing ban on the exit of food products continues to undermine the once thriving food sector in the Strip. I am honoured to be here today to share the stories of these courageous women and men who joined us in challenging movement restrictions.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Hopelessness and despair have increased, particularly among young people, who account for 70 per cent of the population - that is, 1.4 million of the 2 million residents of the Strip. They see no future and feel abandoned by regional leaders and by the international community. Access is repeatedly cited by the World Bank and by Israeli security officials as a catalyst for well-being and stability, and yet as the situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate, counterintuitively, obstacles are placed on people trying to improve their conditions and live their lives peacefully. To give a few examples, last year Gisha invited 24 people from Gaza to a meeting of Israeli, Palestinian and foreign stakeholders about the situation in the Strip.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“It was an effort to apply pressure and simultaneously reinforce Gaza's isolation from the West Bank, primarily to achieve political goals. Certain practices have changed, but overall the picture remains the same. Israel believes that it can manage the humanitarian situation in Gaza and it has an interest in maintaining the physical and political fragmentation of Palestinians, which allows it to pursue annexation in the West Bank. The changes that have been made to the closure, while important, have not been significant enough to alleviate humanitarian concerns, let alone address wider needs. Unemployment in the Strip remains among the highest in the world. Electricity is available just half of the day and families struggle to secure clean water.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Today, Israel continues to exercise control over many aspects of daily life in Gaza. The Rafah crossing, which connects Gaza to Egypt, is vital. However, Israel controls all access to the West Bank, the movement of commercial and humanitarian goods and Gaza's sea space, airspace, access to farmland, civilian infrastructure and the Palestinian population registry. In 2007, Israel further reduced access to a point of closure. Entry of civilian goods was restricted, all exit of goods was blocked and travel of people was allowed only in what Israel called "exceptional humanitarian cases". Far beyond just protecting legitimate security concerns, Israel defined its approach as economic warfare and also the separation policy.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“I do not believe that we are better off or safer for it in Israel. Gisha means "access" or "approach" in Hebrew. We are the only Israeli human rights organization focusing on the situation in Gaza and on how reality there is shaped by our Government's actions. The permanent discourse about Gaza, especially in Israel but also at the United Nations, revolves around terror or crisis. We are lucky at Gisha to see nuance, entrepreneurship, resilience and potential through our broad caseload and our range of contacts. In my comments here today, I hope to share a sober analysis with the Council of where we are, but I also hope to convey my optimism about what the future could hold. There is much that can be done to meaningfully alter course, given a broader understanding ofwhat is at stake and also political will.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source
“Ms. Hary: I thank the Council for the invitation to be here today. I was born in Haifa, in northern Israel, and became a United States citizen at the age of five. My parents had moved to Los Angeles in pursuit of a better life. Their parents before them had fled to Israel to escape conflict and poverty and, like most of us in this Chamber, I believe, I took it for granted that the ability to travel shaped every aspect of my life. I moved back to Israel in June 2007, just days before Hamas took power in Gaza and Israel's subsequent imposition of a near total lockdown on the Strip. Over the past 12 years, I have seen the devastating impact ofIsrael's closure policy on Gaza but also on Israel. Three major military operations and several smaller operations - like the one that we saw last week - have taken the lives of thousands of people.”
2019-11-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8669 (2019) · source