The United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, has issued a stark warning about the deepening humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip, describing it as a “killing field” where civilians are trapped in an “endless death loop.”
His remarks come as Israel resumes its military campaign against Hamas and imposes a total blockade on goods entering the territory.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Guterres said, “Aid has dried up [and] the floodgates of horror have re-opened.” He emphasised that as the occupying power, Israel has a legal obligation under international law to allow the flow of food and medical supplies to civilians in Gaza.
“The current path is a dead end – totally intolerable in the eyes of international law and history,” he said.
His comments followed a rare joint appeal by six UN agencies urging world leaders to intervene to prevent further suffering and death in Gaza. The agencies—OCHA, UNICEF, WFP, WHO, UNRWA, and UNOPS—highlighted the rapid deterioration of conditions on the ground, stating that Palestinians in the territory are being “trapped, bombed and starved again.”
“The latest ceasefire allowed us to achieve in 60 days what bombs, obstruction and lootings prevented us from doing in 470 days of war: life-saving supplies reaching nearly every part of Gaza,” the agencies said. “While this offered a short respite, assertions that there is now enough food to feed all Palestinians in Gaza are far from the reality on the ground.”
According to the agencies, the renewed blockade has led to the closure of all UN-supported bakeries, markets emptied of fresh produce, and hospitals rationing essential medicines, including painkillers and antibiotics. Gaza’s already overstretched health system is described as “partially functional” and overwhelmed, with critical medical supplies running dangerously low.
Israel’s foreign ministry dismissed Guterres’s warnings, accusing him of “spreading slander against Israel.” Spokesman Oren Marmorstein claimed there was no humanitarian crisis in Gaza, citing the entry of over 25,000 aid trucks during the 42-day ceasefire. “As always, you don’t let the facts get in the way,” he added.
The blockade was reinstated on 2 March after a temporary truce expired and Hamas accused Israel of failing to meet its commitments. Fighting resumed on 18 March, with Israeli aerial and ground offensives killing 1,449 Palestinians since then, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry. Israel insists its strikes target Hamas fighters and not civilians.
The humanitarian toll continues to rise. On Tuesday alone, at least 58 Palestinians were reported killed, including 19 in overnight airstrikes. Among the dead were five children in the central town of Deir al-Balah. Additional casualties were recorded in Beit Lahia and areas northwest of Gaza City.
The press community also suffered fresh losses, with the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate reporting that journalist Ahmed Mansour had succumbed to injuries from a Monday strike on a media tent in Khan Younis. His colleague, Helmi al-Faqaawi, was also killed, while several other journalists remain critically injured. The Israeli military said the strike targeted Hassan Eslaih, who they allege is a Hamas operative. Eslaih remains in critical condition.
The war began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Since then, more than 50,810 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
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