UN Security Council hears Secretary‑General report citing settlement expansion, heavy casualties and halted aid in Gaza and West Bank

The United Nations Security Council on March 19 heard a reading of the Secretary‑General’s report on the implementation of Security Council resolution 2334 (2016), which said settlement activity in the occupied West Bank continued at a high rate, heavy civilian casualties were recorded across Gaza and the West Bank, and humanitarian deliveries into Gaza have been halted since March 2, 2025.

The reading, delivered by Miss Siegfried Kirk on behalf of the Secretary‑General, said “hostages must be released immediately and unconditionally” and reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire, unimpeded humanitarian access and full respect for international humanitarian law.

The report covers the period from Dec. 7, 2024, to March 13, 2025, and documents both escalation in hostilities and continuing actions on the ground that the Secretary‑General said risk undermining a two‑state solution. It said Israeli planning authorities advanced or approved approximately 10,600 housing units in settlements in the occupied West Bank during the reporting period, including 4,920 units in East Jerusalem, and that tenders were announced for roughly 700 units near Bethlehem.

On demolitions and seizures, the reading reported that Israeli authorities demolished,…