United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on 6 November strengthened his call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, warning that the place was becoming a “cemetery for children”. According to Mr. Guterres, the current crisis makes the need for a humanitarian ceasefire even more urgent.
The parties to the conflict and the international community must end the crisis and increase humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip. Mr. Guterres also said that the current transport of relief supplies from Egypt to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border gate is not enough to meet the need.
according to station al JazeeraThe UN leader intended to reopen border gates blocked by Israel to bring more aid into the Gaza Strip.
The above warning was issued after health officials in the Gaza Strip said at least 4,104 children were killed, out of more than 10,000 people killed since clashes began between Israel and the armed group Hamas on October 7. According to the AP, about 70% of the Gaza Strip’s 2.3 million people were forced to flee their homes during the conflict.
International organizations say local hospitals cannot accept the injured, while food and clean water are running out and aid falls far short of needs.
The Jordanian Air Force delivered medical aid to the country’s field hospital in the Gaza Strip on 6 November. Photo: Reuters
theo reutersBoth Israel and Hamas have so far rejected growing pressure from the international community for a ceasefire move. The Israeli side insisted that all hostages taken by Hamas in the October 7 attack should be released first. Meanwhile, Hamas said it would not release hostages while the Gaza Strip is still under attack.
The US is pushing for a pause in the conflict to allow aid rather than a complete ceasefire. The White House said US President Joe Biden discussed such a move in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on November 6. The US leader reiterated his support for Israel and stressed that the country must protect civilians.
In an interview broadcast on the radio ABC News The same day, Mr. Netanyahu said Israel would consider an intermittent, tactical ceasefire to facilitate the provision of aid or the release of hostages.
However, this leader said that there would be no ceasefire until all the hostages were released. Mr Netanyahu also announced that Israel would “bear overall responsibility” for security in the Gaza Strip for an “indefinite period” after the conflict ends.
Efforts are on to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis. Following a trip to the Middle East last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Japan to attend the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Summit (a grouping of the world’s leading economies) on November 7 and 8.
According to AP, the main topics of the conference are the conflict that has been going on for more than a month in the Gaza Strip and efforts to reduce the humanitarian crisis there. G7 ministers plan to adopt a common position on resolving the conflict that threatens to destabilize the entire Middle East.
Speaking ahead of the summit, Mr Blinken said he would discuss with other G7 counterparts about efforts the US is making, such as expanding humanitarian relief to the Gaza Strip, and getting more relief supplies to stop the conflict. To put pressure on Israel to agree. Go underground and evacuate more civilians, prevent the conflict from spreading…
Meanwhile, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) plans to hold a summit in Riyadh-Saudi Arabia on November 12 to discuss the situation in the Gaza Strip. It is noteworthy that according to the news site Etamedonline, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will come to Saudi Arabia to attend this conference. A day earlier, leaders of Arab League member states will hold an emergency meeting in Riyadh to discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict.
