President in Paris for Gaza humanitarian aid proposal talks

President Nikos Christodoulides will take part on Thursday in an atypical international humanitarian conference in Paris on means of providing aid to civilians in Gaza.

He is expected to present the Cypriot initiative to create a “maritime corridor” to bring the much-needed aid to the region amid escalated operations by Israel against Hamas.

The death toll in the Gaza Strip currently stands at over 10,500 with an estimated 40 per cent of victims being women and children. More than 1.5 million Palestinians have been displaced by Israel’s military operations in the past month.

In a recent press briefing the United Nations estimated that $1.2 billion will be needed through the end of the year to deliver life-saving assistance to some 2.7 million Palestinian men, women and children. A limited number of trucks carrying humanitarian supplies are crossing into Gaza from Egypt but Israel is not allowing the entry of fuel, which the UN said is desperately needed, unless Hamas agrees to release the estimated 250 hostages it captured on October 7.

Officials from Western and Arab nations, the United Nations and nongovernmental organisations are to meet in Paris to foster a plan to address the practicalities of aid delivery, including restoration of water supply, provision of fuel and electricity, medical aid and food, and floating field hospitals, as well as determine financing and costs of the endeavour.

Over 50 nations are expected to attend including several European countries, the United States and regional powers like Jordan, Egypt and the Gulf countries. Also attending is Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh.

Notably absent from the meeting are any delegates from Israel or Germany. It is understood that no political statement will be issued over the outcome of the conference and the focus of the talks will be on the logistics of how to manage aid provision in the long run, once a humanitarian pause or an end to hostilities is effected.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has called for a “humanitarian pause” in the war, has previously expressed support for the Cypriot sea corridor initiative.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International ahead of the conference issued a call for an immediate ceasefire, saying that only a sustained break in hostilities would have an impact on alleviating the suffering. Relentless attacks by Israel have exacerbated the already dire16-year-long blockade in Gaza to “catastrophic levels”, the organisation said.

“More than two million people in the Gaza Strip are struggling to survive amidst Israel’s relentless attacks that have caused an unprecedented number of civilian casualties and destruction and exacerbated this humanitarian crisis to catastrophic levels. […] If action isn’t taken immediately, the situation will become unimaginably worse.”

The human rights watchdog said an immediate  and sustained ceasefire is the only way to ensure the people of Gaza receive any kind of effective humanitarian aid.

“For this ceasefire to be effective, states must ensure it covers the entire Gaza Strip and that it’s long enough to allow a substantive alleviation of suffering. The wounded have to be properly taken care of and hospitals and clinics must be repaired, relief has to be distributed safely and unconditionally and the dead must be recovered and buried.”

The organisation called on all the international community to “take up its duties” saying it “cannot sit by and witness this suffering any longer.”

The president travelled to Paris on Wednesday, accompanied by Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, Diplomatic Office Director Marilena Raouna and Political Director at the Foreign Ministry Thessalia Salina Shambos.

European Council President Charles Michel, for his part, commended Cyprus, Greece and France for their efforts in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza.

“We are working to help alleviate the suffering. I especially commend France, Greece, Cyprus and some others for their concrete actions, such as a maritime hospital and a maritime corridor. And at the meeting in Paris tomorrow we will discuss and decide on more support,” the EU council president said.

Speaking at the European Parliament in Brussels on Wednesday, Michel also called for humanitarian pauses and corridors in Gaza, noting that a total siege is not inline with international law.

Government Spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis earlier stated that the parameters of the Cypriot initiative had been drafted following contacts held by Christodoulides with the leaders of Egypt, Jordan and Israel, the President of the EU Commission and the US Secretary of State, as well as the foreign minister’s contacts with the Palestinian Authority, the Jordanian foreign minister, and other officials of neighbouring countries.

He said that the Cypriot government had briefed the governments of the US, EU member-states and other countries on the provisions of the Cypriot plan.

Speaking at a parliamentary committee earlier this week, Kombos noted that the Cypriot initiative has “serious advantages” due to the fact that Cyprus maintains historically excellent relations with all states in the region. He stressed that guaranteeing the safety of the humanitarian aid cargo both during its transport from Cyprus and during its distribution to civilians within Gaza was a priority.