UNITED NATIONS (APP) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “horrified” by a deadly Israeli strike on an ambulance convoy outside a hospital in the Gaza Strip on Friday, reiterating his appeal for a humanitarian ceasefire.
“I am horrified by the reported attack in Gaza on an ambulance convoy outside Al Shifa hospital. The images of bodies strewn on the street outside the hospital are harrowing,” the UN chief said in a statement.
Guterres added that for nearly one month, civilians in Gaza, including children and women, have been besieged, denied aid, killed, and bombed out of their homes.
“This must stop,” he stressed.
More than 9,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, mostly women and minors, and 32,000 people wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Earlier, at a UN briefing session, Pakistan’s Ambassador Munir Akram called on Israel to stop its ongoing “genocide” of Palestinian people.
“We cannot mince our words; we have to tell the Israelis: stop the genocide,” Ambassador Akram said, as he reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire.
In his statement, the UN chief said that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is “horrific”.
“Not nearly enough food, water and medicine are coming in to meet people’s needs. Fuel to power hospitals and water plants is running out,” he said, noting that shelters by the UN agency assisting Palestine refugees (UNRWA) were at nearly four times their full capacity “and are being hit in bombardments”.
“Morgues are overflowing. Shops are empty. The sanitation situation is abysmal. We are seeing an increase in diseases and respiratory illnesses, especially among children. An entire population is traumatized. Nowhere is safe.”
Renewing his appeals for a humanitarian ceasefire, the Secretary-General underscored that international humanitarian law must be respected.
“Civilians and civilian infrastructure, including humanitarian and medical workers and assets must be protected. Civilians must also not be used as human shields,” he said, urging also that essential supplies and services, and unimpeded humanitarian access must be safely allowed into and across Gaza “at a scale commensurate with this dramatic situation”.
The UN chief underscored, “all those with influence must exert it to ensure respect for the rules of war, end the suffering and avoid a spillover of the conflict that could engulf the whole region.”