U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “appalled” that 30,000 people have been killed by the war in Gaza and condemned Thursday’s killing of more than a hundred people seeking life-saving aid, his spokesperson said.
Quick Read
- U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply troubled by the death toll of 30,000 due to the war in Gaza and condemns the recent incident where over 100 people were killed while seeking aid.
- The tragic event occurred as Israeli troops reportedly fired on Palestinians attempting to access food from an aid convoy in Gaza City.
- The U.N. is investigating the incident, noting that it was not a U.N. convoy and lacked U.N. presence, making it challenging to ascertain the exact circumstances.
- The U.N. spokesman emphasized that the deaths resulted from the inability to deliver humanitarian aid safely amidst the ongoing conflict.
- The U.N. has been unable to distribute aid in northern Gaza for over a week due to the lack of security for both humanitarian staff and aid recipients.
- The U.N. is advocating for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire to facilitate the organized, predictable, and safe distribution of aid, which is currently not feasible.
- Guterres renews his call for a prompt humanitarian ceasefire and the release of all hostages taken during the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7.
The Associated Press has the story:
UN Chief says he’s shocked by Gaza death toll and killing near aid truck
Newslooks- UNITED NATIONS —
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “appalled” that 30,000 people have been killed by the war in Gaza and condemned Thursday’s killing of more than a hundred people seeking life-saving aid, his spokesperson said.
Witnesses say Israeli troops fired on a large crowd of Palestinians racing to pull food off an aid convoy in Gaza City on Thursday. More than 100 people were killed in the chaos, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters this was not a U.N. convoy and “there was no U.N. presence there,” so it is trying to determine the facts.
“These people died because humanitarian aid has not been able to be delivered in a safe manner,” Dujarric said. Whether they died or were wounded by Israeli gunfire, were crushed by a crowd or run over by trucks, “these are all acts of violence in a sense due to this conflict.”
Dujarric said the United Nations hasn’t been able to deliver aid to northern Gaza for more than a week because of the ongoing conflict and lack of safety for humanitarian staff and the people receiving aid.
“We want to see an immediate humanitarian cease-fire so that we can distribute aid in an organized, predictable and safe manner which is currently not an option for us,” he said.
Guterres reiterated his call for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire and release of all hostages taken captive during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, Dujarric said.
