UN two-state talks press on without US and Israel as UNRWA warns on Gaza access

The UK, France and Canada have hosted United Nations talks on steps towards an Israel-Palestine two-state solution. The US and Israel did not attend. The talks took place as UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, warned that Israeli restrictions are blocking humanitarian access to Gaza.

UK prime minister Andy Burnham, Canadian prime minister Mark Carney and French president Emmanuel Macron were named as participants. At last year's UN General Assembly, several countries including the UK, Canada and France announced they were recognising the state of Palestine. The General Assembly then overwhelmingly voted to endorse a two-state solution declaration.

The Palestinian president and delegation were not able to attend this year's UN meeting. Mahmoud Abbas was due to address the assembly by video link. Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, said only Israel opposed Palestinian participation. He said 152 countries had voted for the Palestinian delegation to address the General Assembly, and he described the UK as leading international momentum. He framed the day as being about policy, law and legality, with a leaders event later to establish the two-state solution and focus on implementation. He said Gaza should be treated as part of one integral Palestinian territory, not as an isolated area.

UNRWA said its Palestinian personnel continue to provide services in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. But since January 2025, its international staff have been blocked, with Israeli authorities denying visas or permits. Since March 2025, Israel has blocked UNRWA from directly bringing humanitarian personnel and aid into Gaza. The agency said food parcels, flour and shelter supplies for hundreds of thousands of people were ready at the border but could not be delivered. It called for greater flexibility from Israel on equipment and supplies.

Christian Saunders, UNRWA's Commissioner General, described the situation in Gaza. He said more than 90 per cent of the population live in tents, under plastic sheeting or in half-destroyed buildings. He said infrastructure has been completely destroyed, with 40,000 cubic metres of raw sewage draining into the eastern Mediterranean every day. Only 3 per cent of land is cultivable, medicines and health care equipment are difficult to get in, and while people are probably not starving, their diet is not good. He warned that the danger is becoming normalised.

Saunders said the main obstacle was not a lack of goods but Israeli restrictions. He called for more flexibility, especially on items Israel considers dual use, such as tent poles and engine oil. He said engine oil is needed for water pumps, garbage trucks and hospital generators, but is strictly rationed.

Zomlot said international recognition by countries such as Canada, France and the UK must be matched by consequences. He said those countries had been a key factor behind Israel's establishment, citing the British mandate period and the Balfour Declaration, and accused them of complicity over the years. He said today must be about action and consequences, pointing to West Bank settlements and E1 settlement activity, which he said could end the two-state solution. He argued that international pressure could change Israel's calculus, comparing the situation to the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. He said the UK prime minister, Andy Burnham, had told parliament two weeks ago that decades of words on a two-state solution needed to be followed by action.

Asked about Mahmoud Abbas's low popularity and the legitimacy of the Palestinian Authority, Zomlot said it was for the Palestinian people to decide their leaders. He said Abbas had been elected president and that elections for the Palestinian parliament, the legislative council, were scheduled for 28 November, with other elections to follow. The interview was cut off before he finished his answer on Palestinian leadership.