U.N.’s Guterres urges immediate Gaza cease-fire amid famine risk
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza and an “ironclad commitment” by Israel for access to humanitarian aid.
Guterres spoke during a visit to the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing into Gaza on Saturday.
“A long line of blocked relief trucks on one side of the gates. The long shadow of starvation on the other,” Guterres said in prepared remarks.
“It’s time to truly flood Gaza with life-saving aid,” Guterres said. “The choice is clear: either surge or starvation.”
Sitting inside a truck filled with food aid and waiting at the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, Magdy, a driver, described the “very difficult” sounds of missiles and planes he hears that keep him awake at night.
“I can’t sleep because of what I hear,” said Magdy, who lives inside his truck for three months at a time. Drivers often park at the border for weeks or months with trucks filled with supplies, which sometimes expires as they await permission to cross.
Russia and China on Friday vetoed the strongest move yet by Washington to pressure Israel at the United Nations Security Council, saying that the U.S.-led resolution endorsing a cease-fire in Gaza was still too weak.
The resolution included a condemnation of the Oct. 7 attacks on southern Israel by Hamas, which killed about 1,200 men, women and children and touched of the war in the Gaza Strip, now in its sixth month.
Most U.N. proposals by other nations have left out criticism of Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and European Union.
In Rafah, Guterres said that “nothing justifies the horrific attacks by Hamas on Oct. 7. And nothing justifies the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”
The death toll in Gaza has climbed above 30,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, while the United Nations warns of a looming “man-made” famine.
“It’s time for an ironclad commitment by Israel for total, unfettered access for humanitarian goods throughout Gaza,” Guterres said.
Israel has said it’s doing all it can to facilitate the flow of food and medical supplies into Gaza and is putting no limits on the amount of aid.
Separately, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday made an unscheduled stop in Tel Aviv in the latest attempt to prod Israel toward a deal that would bring home the hostages taken on Oct. 7 and still being held by Hamas in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is openly spurning U.S. warnings against an invasion of Rafah, the Gaza city where more than 1 million people have sought shelter from the fighting.
In Tel Aviv, Blinken said the U.S. would spell out alternatives to an invasion of Rafah when a delegation of Israelis visits Washington starting on Sunday.