UN secretary-general calls starvation in Gaza a "horror show." Here's what to know today
Palestinians gather to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, today
As the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to spiral, the United Nations’ human rights office had a clear message: “Palestinians in Gaza are starving to death,” a statement read today.
In the past 24 hours, 15 people including four children, died of starvation across the territory according to the enclave’s health ministry.
Separately, at least 1,054 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military while trying to access food aid in Gaza, the UN human rights office added in its statement.
Here’s what to know:
- UN chief’s warning: Starvation is “knocking on every door” in Gaza, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said today, calling the situation a “horror show.” “Around the world, we see an utter disregard for, if not (an) outright violation of, international law,” Guterres told the United Nations Security Council. “We need look no further than the horror show in Gaza,” he added.
- Deaths at aid points: Desperate, hungry people are approaching aid sites run by the controversial Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a statement from the UN human rights office said, “even though between May 27 and July 21, 1,054 Palestinians were killed by the Israeli military in Gaza while trying to access food.” The UN office called on Israel to allow more humanitarian aid into the Strip and lift its restrictions on the UN and other humanitarian groups in the enclave. Read more about the foundation here.
- Ceasefire proposal: Nearly a week after mediators submitted the latest ceasefire and hostage release proposal to Hamas, all parties are still waiting for Hamas’s leaders in Gaza to respond, two sources familiar with the negotiations told CNN.
- Turkish president’s call: Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday urged the international community to “stand together” against Israeli “brutality” in Gaza. “Let us say ‘enough is enough’ to this oppression and this savagery,” Erdogan said at a defense fair in Istanbul.
Starvation “knocking on every door” in Gaza “horror show,” UN chief says
The mother of Yahya Fadi al-Najjar, an infant who died due to malnourishment, mourns as she holds his body during the funeral at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, Gaza, on Sunday
Starvation is “knocking on every door” in Gaza, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has said, calling the situation a “horror show.”
“Around the world, we see an utter disregard for, if not (an) outright violation of, international law,” Guterres told the United Nations Security Council.
“We need look no further than the horror show in Gaza. In the level of death and destruction without parallel in recent times. Malnourishment is soaring. Starvation is knocking on every door. Now we are seeing the last gasp of a humanitarian system built on humanitarian principles,” he said.
The UN’s humanitarian system is being “denied the conditions to function” in Gaza, including the space to deliver aid and the safety to help people in need, Guterres said.
The Israeli military’s new operation in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza has meant that “devastation is being layered upon devastation.”
Guterres also said that he is “appalled” by the striking of UN premises inside Gaza, including the facilities of the United Nations Office for Project Services and warehouses and residences belonging to the World Health Organization.
“These premises are inviolable and must be protected under international humanitarian law without exception,” he said.
