<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The United Nations General Assembly approved this Thursday the resolution presented by Spain and Palestine on the protection of the civilian population and compliance with legal and humanitarian obligations related to the conflict in Gaza.</strong></h4> “The UN General Assembly has just adopted the resolution presented by Spain and Palestine. 149 countries demand an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and compliance with international humanitarian law,” Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares wrote on social media. “We condemn the use of starvation as a method of warfare and the impediment of humanitarian access. We reaffirm our commitment to the two-state solution. It is urgent to alleviate the suffering in Gaza. We must all act against this intolerable humanitarian catastrophe,” he added. The initiative, which was announced by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on May 7 in the Congress of Deputies, was passed in a special emergency session of the General Assembly with 149 votes in favor and 12 against. During the presentation of the resolution, according to a press release from Moncloa, the Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations, Héctor Gómez, emphasized that "it is urgent to send a resounding message regarding Gaza." The 21-point text begins by demanding an "immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire" to be respected by all parties and reiterates the demand for the "immediate, dignified, and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups." It also underlines the obligation of parties to an armed conflict to respect and protect the civilian population and urges all States to respect and protect humanitarian personnel, United Nations and associated personnel, and medical personnel, among others. The resolution includes a firm condemnation of "any practice of starving the civilian population as a method of warfare" and warns of the obligation "not to deprive the civilian population in the Gaza Strip of goods indispensable for its survival." Therefore, it demands that Israel immediately end the blockade, open all border crossings, and "ensure that aid reaches the Palestinian civilian population throughout the Gaza Strip immediately and on a large scale, in line with its obligations under international law and humanitarian principles." The text also emphasizes that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) "remains the backbone of the humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip," rejects any action that undermines the implementation of the Agency's mandate, and calls on all parties to allow the Agency to carry out its mandate with full respect for the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence. Furthermore, it reiterates its “unwavering commitment to the two-state solution” whereby “two democratic States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security within their secure and internationally recognized borders.” Therefore, it “firmly rejects attempts at demographic and territorial change in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem” and “reiterates its unequivocal rejection of actions aimed at forcibly displacing the Palestinian people and illegally seizing Palestinian territory, including any such action in the Gaza Strip, and demands an immediate and complete cessation of such actions.” It also condemns “all plans for individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from the occupied territory” and “demands an immediate halt to all settlement construction, expansion, land confiscations, home demolitions, forced evictions, and settler violence in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.”