The Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, spoke of the disastrous humanitarian situation which takes place in the besieged Gaza Strip, claiming that “civilians are in an endless death loop” in the midst of renewed Israeli bombings and the prohibition of the entry of essential aid.
Addressing journalists on Tuesday, Guterres rejected a new Israeli proposal to control the deliveries of assistance to Gaza, saying that it risks “the control more and the limitation of what will limit the last calories and the grain of flour”.
“Let me be clear: we will not participate in any arrangement which does not fully respect the humanitarian principles: humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,” said Guterres.
No aid has been provided to the Enclave of 2.3 million people since March 2, while Israel continues to seal the passages to the vital borders, except the entrance to everything, from food to medical supplies and fuel.
“More than a whole month has passed without a drop of help in Gaza. No food. No fuel. No drugs. No commercial supplies,” Guterres in New York told.
“While the aid dried up, the horror valves have reopened. Gaza is a field of killing-and civilians are in an endless death loop,” he added.
COGAT, an Israeli military unit responsible for civil issues in the occupied Palestinian territory, met UN agencies last week and international aid groups and said that he had proposed “a monitoring and structured aid mechanism” for Gaza, after he said that the aid was diverted from civilians by Hamas.
Jonathan Whittall, the senior head of the United Nations for Gaza and the West Bank, said last week that there was no proof of help.
Last month, Israel resumed its bombing of Gaza, ending a fragile truce of two months. He also returned the troops to the enclave and tried to seize the territory, including Rafah parts in the south of Gaza.
“Meanwhile, at the crossing points, food, drugs and shelters accumulate and vital equipment is stuck,” said Guterres.
“Undoviated obligations”
Gabriel Elizondo d’Tel Aviv Tribune, postponing from the UN headquarters to New York, said that it was the first time that Guterres used such strong language in remarks on Gaza, reporting that he is “exasperated by the gravity of the situation”.
“He has presented very specific ways of which Israel violates international law.”
Guterres concluded his remarks by calling a permanent cease-fire again, full humanitarian access to Gaza and the release of Israeli captives held in Gaza.
“With points of crossing in Gaza Shut and Aid Blockaded, security is in ruins and our ability to deliver has been strangled,” he said.
“As occupying power, Israel has unequivocal obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” Guterres said.
This means that Israel should facilitate rescue programs and ensure food, medical care, hygiene and public health standards in Gaza, he said. “None of this happens today,” he added.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Egyptian city of El Arish, a key transit point for assistance to Gaza, to invoke Israel to lift his blockage of aid deliveries.
Alongside his Egyptian host, President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi, Macron made a visit to a hospital city at 50 km (30 miles) west of the Gaza Strip and met with health and injured Palestinians have evacuated from Gaza.
Bearing a bouquet of red roses to give to patients, the French president visited several districts as well as a playground for children.
His office said that the trip aimed to put Israel pressure for “the reopening of crossing points for the delivery of humanitarian goods to Gaza”.
The emergency doctor Mahmud Mohammad Elshaer said the hospital has treated around 1,200 Palestinian patients since the Israeli assault on Gaza began in October 2023.
“Some days we can receive 100 patients, others 50,” said Elshaer, adding that many had suffered amputations or eye or brain damage.
In Cairo, Macron, El-Sissi and the King of Jordan Abdullah II called for an “immediate return” to the ceasefire.
The three leaders gathered on Monday to discuss the war and humanitarian efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza, the vast majority of which were moved at least during the war.
More than 50,000 Palestinians were killed in the Israel genocide in Gaza. Buildings and infrastructure on large strips of land has been destroyed and the health system collapsed.