"I renew my call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. This will ensure that sufficient aid reaches where it is needed, facilitate the release of hostages and help reduce tensions in the Middle East."
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said this to the Security Council.
"A lasting end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only come about through a two-state solution," he added. "Rejection at the highest levels of the Israeli government is unacceptable and would indefinitely prolong a conflict that has become a grave threat to global peace and security."
The UN secretary general then underlined that the Israeli government's rejection of the two-state solution and denial of the Palestinian people's right to statehood risks exacerbating polarization and emboldening extremists everywhere.
"The role of the international community is clear," he added, "We must come together to support Israelis and Palestinians to take determined action to advance a meaningful peace process."
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"The entire population of Gaza is suffering destruction on a scale and at a speed unmatched in recent history"
, Guterres said, underlining that "nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people", as well as "the deliberate killing , the wounding, the kidnapping of civilians, the use of sexual violence against them" by Hamas in Israel.
Furthermore, he said he was "deeply disturbed by reports of Israel's inhumane treatment of Palestinians detained during military operations."
Regarding aid, Guterres said that despite all efforts,
"no humanitarian aid operation can work under the conditions imposed on the Palestinians of Gaza and those who do everything possible to help them"
.
So he called for "rapid, safe, unhindered, broader humanitarian access throughout the Strip."
"To be able to carry out our work it is necessary to satisfy a series of operational requirements - continued the UN secretary general - We need security, we must be equipped to carry out our work and this includes telecommunications equipment, armored vehicles and protective equipment, a much greater logistical capacity. We need more crossing points into Gaza to reduce congestion and avoid bottlenecks."
And finally "we need visas: dozens of humanitarian workers have been waiting for months to receive a visa from the Israeli government".
For further information Agenzia ANSA Former Israeli hostages: 'Women dressed as dolls and raped in the tunnels' - War in the Middle East - Ansa.it Dramatic reports of systematic sexual abuse practiced by Hamas on Israeli hostages, male and female, in the tunnels where they are held prisoner for over 100 days they have arrived in a Knesset commission from former prisoners who returned to freedom in November (ANSA)
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