The Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), António Guterres, denounced this Wednesday an “epic humanitarian catastrophe” underway in Gaza and highlighted that the level of aid entering the enclave remains “completely inadequate”, calling for a immediate increase.
At a ministerial-level meeting of the UN Security Council to address the situation in Gaza, Guterres stressed that civilians in Gaza need a continued flow of humanitarian aid and fuel to save lives.
“The people of Gaza are in the middle of an epic humanitarian catastrophe before the eyes of the world. We must not look the other way,” said Guterres, before the diplomatic corps present in the Council.
“Much, much more is needed to begin to respond to human needs in Gaza,” he argued.
In recent days, according to the former Portuguese Prime Minister, the people of the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel finally saw “a ray of hope and humanity in the midst of so much darkness”, in direct reference to the truce in force, adding that it was “deeply moving to see civilians finally getting respite from the bombing, families reunited and vital aid on the rise.”
However, the secretary general indicated that there is still much to do, at a time when water and electricity services have not been completely restored; food systems have collapsed and hunger is spreading, especially in the north of the enclave; and sanitary conditions in shelters are “terrible”, posing a serious threat to public health.
“There are also numerous reports of sexual violence during the attacks that must be vigorously investigated and pursued,” he denounced.
Guterres also acknowledged that the Rafah border crossing does not have sufficient capacity to deliver the aid Gaza needs, especially given “the slowness of security procedures.”
In this sense, he reinforced calls for the opening of other steps, including Kerem Shalom, and for the simplification of inspection mechanisms to allow for the necessary increase in aid.
At Wednesday’s meeting, Guterres also addressed the resolution passed this month by the Security Council calling for urgent and expanded humanitarian pauses and corridors in Gaza, noting that it was passed in a context of “widespread death and mass destruction.”
Analyzing the resolution point by point, Guterres indicated that he will provide the Security Council with a set of options to effectively monitor the implementation of the resolution.
“I have already established a working group consisting of the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, the Department of Peace Operations, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Office of Legal Affairs to urgently prepare proposals in this regard. “So far, it is clear that implementation has been, at best, partial and woefully insufficient,” he stressed.
Guterres stressed that the success of the implementation will not be measured by the number of trucks entering Gaza, but “by the lives saved, the end of suffering and the restoration of hope and dignity.”
The UN leader also noted that intense negotiations are underway to extend the truce in Gaza, a move he “greatly welcomed”, but reiterated calls for a “true humanitarian ceasefire”.
Source: TSF
