Amman, Sept. 23 (Petra) – United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Annalena Baerbock said that thousands of orphans in Gaza roam among rubble and debris, eating sand and drinking contaminated water, highlighting the theme of this historic session: "Better Together: 80 Years and More for Peace, Development, and Human Rights." During her opening remarks at the UN General Assembly meetings on Tuesday, Baerbock placed responsibility for the current situation on the assembly, describing it as a result of the "failure of the United Nations." She asked, "Where is the United Nations? The world is watching us, and we must improve our performance and not allow skeptics to exploit failure against us." She added, "When the principles of the Charter are ignored and civilians and children are killed, it is not the Charter that fails, nor the UN itself it is the member states’ implementation and their will to hold violators accountable that matter. We owe it to acknowledge this failure." Baerbock stressed that the future of the organization will also depend on the selection of the next UN Secretary-General, saying, "We must pause and reflect." She concluded that, as 80 years ago, the UN stands at a crossroads. "It is up to each member state to rise to the level of leadership shown by our predecessors, to act when action is necessary, and to show people around the world that the United Nations is present today." //Petra// AF