By Harriet Tornguvan
The Ambassador of the State of Palestine Abdullah M. Abu Shawesh, has continued to speak out against the treatment of Palestinians, denouncing what he described as "horrific and televised genocide" carried out by Israel, with the backing of the United States and other Western nations.
Speaking during a media briefing in Abuja, Ambassador Shawesh provided a stark update on the ongoing crisis, marking 356 days of intense violence in the region.
According to Shawesh, as of Wednesday, September 24, the death toll in Gaza had reached 41,467, with 95,921 individuals injured. In the West Bank, 717 Palestinians had lost their lives, including 160 children, 10 women, and 9 elderly individuals. Additionally, 222 staff members from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency UNRWA had been killed in the conflict.
The Ambassador further reported that, as of Monday, September 23, over 10,600 Palestinians were being held in Israeli detention facilities, including prisons and camps.
He said, those detained include 17 members of parliament, 100 university students, 8,872 individuals under arbitrary administrative detention, 735 children, and 410 women all from the West Bank alone.
Shawesh added that thousands more had been detained from Gaza over the past 11 months.
Ambassador Shawesh also raised concerns about the deteriorating health conditions within the detention facilities, where diseases such as scabies are spreading due to inadequate sanitation and insufficient medical care.
He urged international organizations, particularly the Red Cross, to press Israel to allow visits to its prisons and ensure that detainees are treated in accordance with international law.
Shawesh highlighted a recent incident involving the Red Cross, which had attempted to return a truck carrying 88 bodies that had been taken by Israeli forces from Gaza.
He said, the handover was stopped, however, due to the lack of information regarding the identities of the deceased and the circumstances of their recovery.
“We call on the Red Cross to fulfill its obligations in line with international protocols governing the receipt and transfer of bodies," he said. "We also urge them to push for Israel to comply with international law in its treatment of Palestinian detainees"
Shawesh noted that in July 2024 alone, 21 airstrikes targeted schools being used as shelters, killing over 270 people and injuring many others. Among the victims, he said were women, children, and other vulnerable civilians.
"The war has stripped every boy and girl in Gaza of their childhood and access to education," Shawesh lamented. "More than 625,000 students have been out of school since the conflict began, witnessing unimaginable atrocities that no child should ever endure."
Ambassador Shawesh expressed gratitude to the Nigerian government and its people for their support of Palestine's right to freedom and independence.
He acknowledged Vice President Kashim Shettima's speech at the United Nations General Assembly, which reaffirmed Nigeria's commitment to the two-state solution as the path to peace.
