Cairo Ministerial Conference to Enhance the Humanitarian Response in Gaza

New Zealand thanks Egypt and the United Nations for hosting today’s conference.

We acknowledge Egypt’s critical role in facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, and its on-going facilitation of medical evacuations.

We also acknowledge Egypt’s leadership in mediation efforts to reach a ceasefire.

The ceasefire agreement in Lebanon last week shows that diplomacy can work when there is political will. We remain hopeful the same can be achieved for Gaza.

New Zealand strongly supports the Secretary-General’s role and his continued engagement on the interconnected crises in the Middle East.   

Despite our geographic distance, conflict in the Middle East impacts New Zealand.

Our people care about what is happening in the world. As a nation we are horrified by the deaths in this conflict, and the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.

New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Rt Hon Winston Peters, said in the United Nations General Assembly in September, the “misery was caused by both Hamas’ monstrous terrorist attack last year and now the overwhelming nature of Israel’s response. We are most concerned about the generational consequences of this level of suffering and violence with no end in sight.”

These words remain truer than ever. 

We again call on parties to the conflict to agree to an immediate ceasefire, and to the release of all hostages.

Every attempt by the UN to access North Gaza between 1-25 November was impeded or denied.

Right now, there needs to be much better access into Gaza and within Gaza to enable the sufficient and safe delivery of aid.

There are many reasons why aid is not getting to those who need it, in particular Israeli restrictions on the types of supplies that can enter Gaza. In addition, disruption at access points and looting; organised criminal groups that are profiteering; and ultimately military operations that continue to limit the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance.

As long as demand for food and basic necessities outstrips supply, aid delivery will be difficult. 

Food and medical supplies do not need to be in such scare supply that they become the target of looting. More aid must be allowed in and local police need to be able to operate.

This not about finding another technical solution. This is about finding the political will to implement the technical solutions that already exist. Parties must meet their international humanitarian law obligations. And we continue to call on Israel to allow essential supplies of humanitarian assistance to flow into Gaza.

Palestinians cannot pay the price for the defeat of Hamas.

Safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access are legal requirements. 

We encourage Egyptian agencies to keep doing what they can to streamline and increase the flow of aid into Gaza, including working jointly with the Kaag Mechanism to match goods against coordinated and prioritised needs.  

Since 7 October 2023, New Zealand has provided $22 million New Zealand dollars in humanitarian assistance to the World Food Programme, International Committee of the Red Cross, UNICEF, and the United Nations 2720 Mechanism for Gaza. We have also continued our regular annual contribution to UNRWA and supported the humanitarian response in Lebanon. 

Today, I am pleased to announce that New Zealand will contribute a further $7.5 million New Zealand dollars to the World Food Programme and UNICEF to continue their critical work addressing extreme food needs and the disproportionate impact of the crisis on children.

We are committed to working towards an irreversible path to achieving a two-state solution, where Israelis and Palestinians can live securely within internationally recognised borders. This is the only realistic option to achieve a just and enduring peace.