UN Secretary-General Accuses Israel of "Suffocating" Gaza, Ignores Existence of Hamas

Speaking in Gaza on June 28, 2016, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said "we need to speak openly of the challenges" - and then failed to mention Hamas.

Instead, the secretary-general blamed Israel for making the lives of Gazans "difficult," while ignoring the purpose of the Gaza blockade to prevent Hamas from getting weapons to end Israeli lives. The Secretary-General neglected to mention the thousands of rockets Hamas and its affiliates have launched into Israel or the terror tunnels Hamas has constructed to attack Jews. In fact, the Secretary-General did not mention Hamas, the ruling authority in Gaza, even once.

In his words:

"I stand with the people of Gaza to say that the United Nations will always be with you. They are enduring enormously difficult living conditions. The closure of Gaza suffocates its people, stifles its economy and impedes reconstruction efforts. It is a collective punishment for which there must be accountability...We need to speak openly of the challenges and the unacceptable difficulties that the people of Gaza face. Of the humiliation of the occupation and the closures, but also of the division between Gaza and the West Bank."