I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The European Union reiterates its call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the unconditional release of all hostages, the urgent improvement of access and sustained distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale throughout Gaza, and an enduring end to hostilities, in line with UNSC Resolution 2735. The EU deplores the unacceptable number of civilian casualties, especially women and children, in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as the catastrophic levels of hunger and imminent risk of famine caused by the insufficient entry of aid into Gaza.

The EU condemns in the strongest possible terms Hamas’ brutal terrorist attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023, and stands with the families of the victims and the hostages taken by Hamas.

The EU strongly condemns the upsurge in settler violence in the West Bank, Israel must stop the legalisation of illegal settlement expansion, prevent settler violence and ensure the perpetrators are held accountable. The EU is considering possible further restrictive measures against extremist settlers and against entities and organisations which support them, as well as against Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and entities and organizations which support them.

The European Union is ready to contribute to reviving a political process on the basis of the two-state solution, including through the Global Alliance and through the holding of an international peace conference soon, and welcomes diplomatic peace and security initiatives. The EU stresses that a credible pathway to Palestinian statehood is a crucial component of that political process.

At this point in time, we would like to put on record that with regard to all resolutions that are adopted during the 79^th session of the General Assembly, the EU and its Member States consider that whenever “Palestinian government” is mentioned this refers to the Palestinian Authority.

Furthermore, we point out that the term "Palestine" in any of the resolutions under consideration by the Fourth Committee cannot be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine, and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member States on this issue and hence on the question of the validity of an accession to the conventions and treaties mentioned therein.

The European Union as a whole has not expressed a legal qualification with regard to the term "forced displacement" used in a number of Resolutions.

The EU wishes to see streamlining of the resolutions, including by the use of balanced language, and reductions in the number of these resolutions in the future.