UN Security Council Open Debate: Alakbarov Warns Gaza 'Increasingly Precarious'; 856 Palestinians Killed Since October Ceasefire; Board of Peace UNSC Petition Heard

The UN Security Council held its monthly open debate on the Middle East situation and the Palestinian question on May 22, 2026, with Deputy Special Coordinator Ramiz Alakbarov delivering the principal briefing. Alakbarov warned member states that conditions across the Occupied Palestinian Territory are 'increasingly precarious': Israeli forces have killed at least 856 Palestinians since the ceasefire came into force on October 10, 2025 — an average of more than 3 per day across a nominal ceasefire framework. The IDF now controls more than 50% of Gaza's territory. Alakbarov stated that Israeli strikes continue 'on a nearly daily basis, killing dozens,' alongside documented armed activity by Hamas and other Palestinian groups. In the West Bank, OCHA documented at least 49 Israeli settler attacks causing casualties or property damage in a single week (May 12–18), including arson attacks on homes, farmland, vehicles, and a mosque. Humanitarian conditions in Gaza remain 'acute,' with the population 'deeply dependent on daily aid delivery.' The debate also provided the first formal UNSC forum since the Board of Peace (chaired by Nickolay Mladenov) on May 19–21 formally announced it would petition the UNSC to use 'every means at its disposal' to press Hamas to accept verified disarmament — naming Hamas's categorical refusal as the 'principal obstacle' to Phase 2 ceasefire implementation. Hamas rejected this framing, conditioning any weapons handover on a framework culminating in Palestinian statehood. A National Transitional Committee for Gaza (led by former PA minister Ali Shaath, supervised by the Board of Peace) has been established as an alternative governance track outside the Hamas-PA dynamic. The UNSC debate proceeded under the shadow of Russia and China's veto power, which limits any enforcement mechanism the Board of Peace can request. Implementation of UNSC Resolution 2803 — the October 2025 ceasefire framework — has stalled on Phase 2 modalities.