UN Secretary-General is ‘horrified’ by the attack on an ambulance convoy in Gaza

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “horrified” by reports that a convoy of ambulances was hit near Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza. About it it says in a statement published on the Secretary General’s website.

Guterres stressed that he does not forget the terrorist attacks and crimes of Hamas against the people of Israel, but “for almost a month now, civilians in Gaza, including children and women, have been blockaded, denied assistance, killed and expelled from their homes by bombing.” . “This must stop,” the statement said.

The Secretary General noted that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is “terrible”, since it does not receive the amount of food, water, medicine necessary to meet the needs of people, shelters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) are overcrowded and subject to bombing, and the incidence of diseases is growing .

“Nowhere is safe. I renew my previous calls for a humanitarian ceasefire,” Guterres said. He called for respect for international humanitarian law and stressed that civilians and infrastructure must be protected.

On the morning of October 7, the Palestinian group Hamas began military operations against Israel. The IDF responded by launching Operation Iron Swords, striking hundreds of Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.

On October 24, at the UN Security Council, Guterres called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the release of hostages, as well as an end to “attacks on civilians, homes and hospitals” and to ensure the continued delivery of humanitarian aid. He condemned the attack of the Palestinian group Hamas on Israel, noting that the actions of the militants cannot be a reason “for collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”

Israel’s UN representative Gilad Erdan called Guterres’ speech “shocking” and called on the secretary general to resign immediately. He also said that Israel would stop issuing visas to UN representatives. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen refused a meeting with Guterres, saying that Hamas must first be destroyed.

On October 27, Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told reporters that Israel’s actions as part of “collective punishment” of the population of the Gaza Strip constitute war crimes.