Speaking at the UNSC Quarterly Open Debate on 23 July on the agenda ‘The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question,’ Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, called for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and an end to the human suffering in Gaza. He highlighted the grave humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where acute shortages of food, fuel, and medical services persist, and the education system is in a dire state. Reiterating that India was the first non-Arab country to recognise the Palestinian state, he said India’s ‘commitment towards the Palestinian cause is unwavering’ as he called for a two-state solution ‘within recognised and mutually agreed borders.’