UN renews call for cease-fire in Gaza

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) – The UN on Monday reiterated its call for a cease-fire in Gaza, as Israeli attacks on the Palestinian enclave continued.

"What the resumption of fighting has done is it has led to return of civilians being killed, so people being killed with their families, in their homes as they're receiving shelter, as they were sleeping, as they were eating," spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters during his briefing.

"We're seeing a cross-section of the population of Gaza, civilians, esteemed scientists, journalists, UN staff workers, all of them dying in Gaza, and this is why we want to renew our call for humanitarian cease-fire," he added.

Dujarric said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is "extremely concerned" about the resumption of hostilities between Israel and Hamas, renewed Israeli ground operations, airstrikes in southern Gaza, and rocket firings from Gaza toward Israel.

"We have again been advocating both privately and publicly for the Israeli forces to avoid further action that would exacerbate an already catastrophic humanitarian situation," said the spokesman.

He also commented on the situation in the occupied West Bank.

"We continue to be very worried about what we're seeing in the West Bank, intensifying Israeli operations, spiking or settler violence of high number of fatalities, and arrests," said Dujarric.

"We're also seeing attacks on Israelis by Palestinians. I think we need to be able to keep a focus on both what is going on in the Gaza and the West Bank simultaneously," he added.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the end of the week-long humanitarian pause with Hamas.

At least 15,899 Palestinians have been killed and more than 42,000 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.