The forced exodus of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip would create an insurmountable problem and hinder any potential resolution to the conflict, according to UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. Grandi shared this perspective during a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday. The text of his speech was distributed by the UNHCR press office in Geneva.
“Another violent exodus of Palestinians will only create another intractable problem and make it impossible to find a solution to this long-standing conflict,” Grandi warned. He reminded Israel of its international legal obligation as the occupying power “not to force civilians to flee the territory it occupies.”
Grandi emphasized that “the war in Gaza is a tragic reminder of what happens when conflicts and the resulting refugee crisis go unaddressed.” He pointed out that 13 years after the conflict in Syria began, 5.6 million Syrian refugees remain in neighboring countries, which have also hosted Palestinian refugees for generations. Grandi expressed particular concern for Lebanon, highlighting the "extremely acute tensions surrounding the presence of refugees in that country.”
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Based on materials from TASS