United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres holds deep concerns that the Gaza Strip is turning into “a graveyard for children.”
On Monday, Guterres made a televised address from UN headquarters, reiterating his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas, which has so far claimed more than 10,000 Palestinian lives since October 7, and over 1,400 Israelis.
Protecting civilians “must be paramount” Guterres said. “We must act now to find a way out of this brutal, awful, agonising dead end of destruction.”
“Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children. Hundreds of girls and boys are reportedly being killed or injured every day. I am deeply concerned about clear violations of international humanitarian law that we are witnessing.”
“Let me be clear – no party to an armed conflict is above international humanitarian law.”
“Ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces and continued bombardment are hitting civilians, hospitals, refugee camps, mosques, churches and U.N. facilities – including shelters. No one is safe.”
“At the same time, Hamas and other militants use civilians as human shields and continue to launch rockets indiscriminately towards Israel,” he continued.
Guterres noted the 89 people working with the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) who have been killed in Gaza.
“I join the UN family in mourning 89 of our UNRWA colleagues who have been killed in Gaza – many of them together with members of their family,” he said. “They include teachers, school principals, doctors, engineers, guards, support staff.”
Guterres also reiterated his “utter condemnation of the abhorrent acts of terror perpetrated by Hamas on 7 October.”
“[I] repeat my call for the immediate, unconditional and safe release of hostages held in Gaza,” he said. “Nothing can justify the deliberate torture, killing, injuring and kidnapping of civilians.”
As the conflict enters its second month, Israel continues to strike Gaza from the air, imposing a siege and launching a ground invasion, leaving more than one million Gazans homeless.
Aid trucks have been entering Gaza from Egypt via the Rafah crossing, a stretch that does not border Israel — but UN officials have stressed this is not enough for the 2.3 million people of Gaza.
“The trickle of assistance does not meet the ocean of need,” Guterres said. “The Rafah crossing alone does not have the capacity to process aid trucks at the scale required.”
“Just over 400 trucks have crossed into Gaza over the past two weeks – compared with 500 a day before the conflict. And crucially, this does not include fuel.”
“Without fuel…water cannot be pumped or purified. Raw sewage could soon start gushing onto the streets, further spreading disease.”
“Without fuel, newborn babies in incubators and patients on life support will die.”
Dr Bashar Murad, director of the Al Quds Hospital in Gaza City, told France 24 that women in labour are unable to access health services, such as ambulances, doctors or midwives, saying “it’s dangerous to travel because of the bombing.”
“A lot of people, especially children, are suffering from infections, including skin sores and waterborne diseases like diarrhoea,” he said.
“They are living in shelters where hygiene is bad and people are very close together, so disease spreads.”
Médecins Sans Frontières paediatric intensive care doctor Dr Tanya Haj-Hassan, reported that women have been likelier to miscarry or give birth prematurely, threatening “the survival of the baby.”
Scarce electricity supplies are a “death sentence” for premature babies who need incubators, breathing machines, and infusion pumps.
“Without any of those things, those premature babies won’t survive,” Dr Haj-Hassan said.
Dominic Allen from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) said that “pregnant women are unable to access basic maternal health services. They’re facing unthinkable challenges.”
“Now the healthcare system is on the brink of collapse and, in some health facilities, already collapsing,” Allen said.
“There’s the safety issue of where is she going to give birth, and how. There is nowhere safe in Gaza at the moment.”
“Pregnant women need at least one-third of a litre more, and breastfeeding women need at least two-thirds on top of that.”
“A woman who gave birth seven months ago told us that her milk supply has dried up because she can’t drink enough water, and also because of the stress and strain of moving from one shelter to another.”
One report from last week revealed that pregnant women in Gaza are being forced to undergo emergency C-sections without anaesthetics.
A youth volunteer with ActionAid in Gaza sent a message from Al-Shifa Hospital – the largest medical facility Gaza.
“I’m now at the Al-Shifa Hospital, in the incubator department…there is no fuel in The Gaza Strip, there is no fuel entering the Gaza Strip or going to the hospitals,” the volunteer, named Bisan, said.
“So more than 45 incubators just in Al-Shifa Hospital could stop. And these newborn babies could simply [die]… Because they need special care. These [babies] in incubators with an age of 42-45 weeks of pregnancy, days old, are [at] threat of [dying].”
Hiba Tibi, the Palestinian country director at CARE International described the situation where women who were unable to breastfeed “are being forced to use contaminated water for baby formula as they have no access to clean water”.
“Today, my colleague told me they are drinking the swimming pool water and drinking it because they cannot access water anymore,” she told CNN.
“Unfortunately in Gaza, we are seeing something we have never seen before. Now we are seeing people who are not only [being killed] by the bombing and the shelling but also the lack of water, the accessing and consumption of contaminated water.”
Bisan Owda, a young Palestinian, has been documenting the daily struggles of her life in Gaza since last month. In her latest video, posted three days ago, the 25-year told her followers about waking up at 4am to use the bathrooms to avoid the long lines, and the scarcity of water and food.
“This is the first water I’m drinking since 8am. It’s only 200 millimetres, and it’s now 3pm. People here in Gaza are more thirsty more and more everyday.”