Palestine's envoy to the UN, Riyad Mansour, on Tuesday denounced Israel's ongoing military actions against Palestinians, accusing Israel of pursuing a deliberate strategy to "get rid of Palestinian demography."
"Israeli's plan is clear in Gaza, in East Jerusalem and in the rest of the West Bank, get rid of Palestinian demography, to seize Palestinian geography," Mansour told the UN Security Council, affirming that it "will never happen."
Mansour stressed that "there is no military solution to this conflict, only a political one."
He argued that while Israel continues its large-scale military assault-targeting refugee camps and countless civilians-it is simultaneously undermining any viable political resolution by dismantling the two-state solution in favor of permanent annexation.
Describing the human toll of these actions, Mansour lamented, "Enough bloodshed, enough agony, enough suffering."
He noted that Israel has killed at least 50,000 Palestinians, "maimed, displaced, arbitrarily arrested, tortured and caused suffering for millions of Palestinians."
Mansour recalled the heartrending voices of young victims, including 5-year-old Hind Rajab and 15-year-old Layan Hamadeh, whose stories bear witness to the relentless tragedy.
Emphasizing the need for dignity in the burial of every victim, Mansour further said: "Our children deserve compassion and solidarity. They are not less deserving of your outrage for their killing and their inhumane treatment."
"As we ask you to know the stories of our children and to remember their names, we offer our condolences to the Bibas family. Nothing justifies what happened to Kfir and Ariel Bibas or their mother Shiri. They should have been safe in their homes, with their family, as our children should be safe in their home with their family," he added about three hostages taken from Israel to Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023. They were killed, according to Hamas, in an Israeli airstrike on the location where they were being held.
Calling on the Security Council to uphold international law and protect children, he said, "Justice does not serve only one group of people and ignore other children."
"Palestinians and Israelis are not destined to be eternally at war. Peace is possible," he said.
Rajab became trapped in her family car on Jan. 29 after it came under Israeli army fire in Gaza City and was found dead after nearly two weeks of uncertainty.
Hind was traveling with her family, including her 15-year-old cousin Layan, fleeing fighting in northern Gaza when they came under Israeli fire, according to the Palestine Red Crescent.
Surrounded by the bodies of relatives, they called for help, and a Red Crescent ambulance was dispatched.
According to the humanitarian group, Layan was killed while speaking to the Red Crescent team by phone as gunfire could be heard in the background.
When the team called back, it was Hind who answered, possibly the only survivor in the car. Soon after, they lost all contact with her.
Daniel Levy, head of the policy institute US-Middle East Project, emphasized the importance of security for both Israelis and Palestinians, as he recalled the tragic incidents involving Palestinian children.
"A minute of silence for each of the Bibas children would be appropriate, as would a minute of silence for each of the more than 18,000 Palestinian children murdered in Israel's devastation of Gaza. That silence would extend to over 300 hours," he said.
Levy further stressed that "unlawful forced displacement of Palestinians must not be endorsed or encouraged by any state, let alone a P5 state."
"We know attempts have been made in the past to remove Palestinians. Neither people will be ethnically cleansed nor submitted to genocidal violence," he added.
