Draft Security Council statement on Gaza leaked

A draft of the Security Council president’s statement on the three-week-long conflict between Israel and Hamas calls for an “immediate and unconditional humanitarian ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip.

The document, leaked online by UN headquarters-based reporter Nabil Abi Saab, “calls on parties to engage in efforts to achieve a durable and fully respected ceasefire, based on the Egyptian initiative.”

The draft makes no mention of Israel’s right to self-defense — nor does it mention Hamas or Israel in the context of the conflict — but it makes a blanket statement expressing “grave concern regarding the deterioration in the situation as a result of the crisis related to Gaza and the loss of civilian lives and casualties.”

The council is set to adopt the statement during a meeting on the situation in Gaza at 7 a.m. local time in Israel.