Antonio Guterres rejected Israel’s attempt to control aid deliveries and calls Gaza a “extermination field” while the block persists.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke about the terrible humanitarian situation that unfolds in the besieged Gaza Strip, saying that “civilians are in an endless death cycle” amid new Israeli bombings and the prohibition of very necessary help entry.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Guterres has rejected a new Israeli proposal to control Gaza aid deliveries, saying it runs the risk of “further controlling and cruelly limiting help to the last calorie and grain of flour.”
“Let me be clear: we will not participate in any agreement that does not fully respect humanitarian principles: humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,” said Guterres.
No help has been delivered to the enclave of 2.3 million people since March 2, while Israel continues to close important border crossings, preventing everything from entering, 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 medicine. No commercial supply,” Guterres said in New York.
“As help dried it, the horror floodgates have reopened. Gaza is a killing field – and civilians are in an endless death cycle,” he added.
Cogat, an Israeli military unit responsible for civil affairs in occupied Palestinian territories, met last week with UN agencies and international aid groups and said it proposed “a structured mechanism for monitoring and entry of help” after claiming that help was being diverted from civilians by Hamas.
Jonathan Whittall, a top UN help employee to Gaza and West Bank, said last week that there was no evidence of deviation from help.
Israel resumed the bombing of Gaza last month, ending a fragile two -month truce. He also sent troops back to the enclave and has been trying to take territory, including parts of Rafah, in southern Gaza.
“Meanwhile, at crossing points, food, medicine and shelter supplies are accumulating, and vital equipment is stuck,” said Guterres.
‘Improcerer Obligations’
Gabriel Elizondo, from Al Jazeera, reporting from UN headquarters in New York, said this is the first time Guterres uses such a strong language in comments about Gaza, signaling that he is getting “exasperated with how bad the situation became there.”
“He has exposed very specific forms in which Israel is violating international law.”
Guterres concluded his comments by once again asking for a permanent ceasefire, total humanitarian access in Gaza and the liberation of Israeli prisoners kept in Gaza.
“With the crossing points for Gaza closed and the blocked help, security is in scams and our delivery capacity has been strangled,” he said.
“As an occupying power, Israel has unequivocal obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” said Guterres.
This means that Israel should facilitate relief programs and ensure food, medical care, hygiene and public health standards in Gaza, he said. “None of this is happening today,” he added.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Egyptian city of El Arish, an important traffic point to help Gaza to ask Israel to suspend the blockade of help deliveries.
Alongside his Egyptian host, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Macron visited a hospital in the port city 50 km (30 miles) to the west of the Gaza Strip and met with sick and wounded medical professionals from Gaza.
Carrying a bouquet of red roses to give patients, the French president visited several wards, as well as a recreation area for children.
His cabinet said the trip aimed to press Israel for the “reopening of passing points for the delivery of humanitarian goods in Gaza.”
Emergency Department doctor Mahmud Mohammad Elshaer said the hospital dealt with about 1,200 Palestinian patients since the Israeli attack Gaza began in October 2023.
“A few days we can receive 100 patients, another 50,” said Elshaer, adding that many have suffered amputations or eye or brain lesions.
In Cairo, Macron, El-Sisi and King Abdullah II of Jordan asked for an “immediate return” to the ceasefire.
The three leaders gathered on Monday to discuss war and humanitarian efforts to alleviate Palestinians’ suffering in Gaza, the vast majority of whom were shifted at least once during the war.
More than 50,000 Palestinians were killed in the genocide of Israel in Gaza. Buildings and infrastructure in large extensions of land were destroyed, and the health system collapsed.
Originally published by Al Jazeera on 08/04/2025
Source: https://www.ocafezinho.com/2025/04/10/chefe-da-onu-diz-que-palestinos-em-gaza-estao-em-ciclo-mortal-e-exige-fim-do-bloqueio/
