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‘Unimaginable suffering’: UN chief reacts to Israel's Gaza City takeover plan
Through the statement, the UN secretary-general reiterated his urgent appeal for a ceasefire in Gaza.
United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres on Friday condemned Israel's decision to control Gaza City, a decision cleared by the country's security cabinet in a meeting late Thursday night.
According to a statement issued through the secretary general’s spokesperson, the fresh Israeli action “risks deepening the already catastrophic consequences for millions of Palestinians, and could further endanger more lives, including those of the remaining hostages”.
Associate spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay added that Guterres has also warned that an Israeli offensive will result in additional forced displacement, killings and massive destruction, "compounding the unimaginable suffering of the Palestinian population in Gaza”.
Through the statement, the secretary-general reiterated his urgent appeal for a ceasefire.
The UN chief strongly urged Israel to abide by the July 2024 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice to end its “unlawful presence” in Palestinian territory, including Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Tremblay told UN reporters on Friday.
Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City
Israel said it will take control of Gaza City — a move that could displace 1 million Palestinians living there — defying domestic concerns over the fate of the remaining hostages and an international outcry over the humanitarian situation in the enclave.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet approved the operation early Friday for the purpose of “defeating Hamas” after 22 months of fighting that has killed tens of thousands of Gazans and sparked UN famine warnings. The decision stopped short of the full takeover that Netanyahu floated in an interview with Fox News on Thursday.
He said Israel would eventually “hand it over to Arab forces that will govern it properly, without threatening us, and giving the Gazans a good life.” The cabinet set a symbolic deadline of October 7 to complete preparations, two years since Hamas — an Iran-backed Islamist faction which is on Western terrorism blacklists — triggered the war by attacking Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting 250, according to local media.
