An overwhelming majority of nations \u2013 120 countries \u2013 voted on Friday for a United Nations resolution calling for a \u201csustained \ufeffhumanitarian truce\u201d in Gaza, even as Israel\u2019s military announced it is \u201cexpanding ground operations\u201d in the besieged enclave. <\/p>\n
The announcement followed reports of intense aerial bombardment in Gaza, which Palestinian telecom company Jawwal said cut off its telecommunications network in the territory. An eyewitness at Gaza\u2019s Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital described the situation as being \u201cleft in the dark with no connection to the outside world.\u201d <\/p>\n
Israel has vowed to continue ground raids\u00a0over the coming days after ordering the \u201ccomplete siege\u201d of Gaza in the wake of Hamas\u2019 October 7 terror attack that killed more than 1,400 people and saw some 200 people taken to Gaza as hostages. Ongoing Israeli air strikes and a blockade of\u00a0life-saving fuel have since sparked dire warnings for the fate 2 million people trapped in Gaza. <\/p>\n
Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 7,000 people in Gaza since October 7, according to figures released Thursday by the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. <\/p>\n
In New York, UN member nations voted for a \u201csustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities\u201d in the war between Israel and Hamas, so that humanitarian aid can reach civilians in Gaza. <\/p>\n
The vote outcome prompted a burst of loud applause in the assembly hall where delegates had gathered to vote and debate. The US, like Israel, has sharply criticized the effort and was one of 14 countries that voted against it on Friday. <\/p>\n
Jordan brought the resolution to the General Assembly after successive attempts to call for ceasefires and humanitarian pauses failed in the more powerful Security Council. <\/p>\n
The draft resolution calls for an \u201cimmediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities,\u201d as well as \u201cimmediate, full, sustained, safe and unhindered humanitarian access,\u201d and asks Israel to rescind its order to evacuate northern Gaza. It also calls for \u201cthe immediate and unconditional release of all civilians who are being illegally held captive\u201d but does not name Hamas as the captor. <\/p>\n
While a general assembly vote is politically significant, it is not binding, and comes amid a lack of global consensus on how to resolve the crisis. <\/p>\n
Friday\u2019s resolution was criticized by the US and its allies for not explicitly criticizing Hamas. Canada\u2019s last-minute amendment on Friday, which sharply denounced the militant group, failed to pass. <\/p>\n
Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan called the resolution\u2019s passing a \u201cday of infamy\u201d for the UN. \u201cIt is the duty of this body to call out murderous terrorists by name, not hide them behind empty words. Why are you defending murderers?\u201d He asked. <\/p>\n
Ahead of the vote, Jordan\u2019s Foreign Minister urged others to support the resolution, warning on social media that Israel\u2019s expanding ground operations \u201cwill be a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions for years to come,\u201d Ayman Safadi said. <\/p>\n
\u201cMillions will be watching every vote. History will judge,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Sewage is overflowing in the streets of Gaza and its population is facing the increasing threat of disease and hunger without access to outside supply lines, the United Nations has warned, adding that the aid so far permitted to enter Gaza amounts to \u201cnothing more than crumbs.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cFood and water are running out. The streets of Gaza have started overflowing with sewage. Gaza is on the brink of a massive health hazard as the risks of diseases are looming,\u201d said\u00a0Phillipe Lazzarini, the head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). <\/p>\n
\u201cThe last remaining public services are collapsing, our aid operation is crumbling and for the first time ever, [our staff] report that people are now hungry.\u201d <\/p>\n
Some aid trucks have been able to enter Gaza through Egypt since the crisis began but Lazzarini said the deliveries were doing little to address the\u00a0Gazans\u2019 needs. And while the initial aid deliveries have provided some food, water and medicine, Israel has not allowed the import of fuel, which the UN says is \u201cparalyzing\u201d its aid operations.\u00a0UNRWA officials said this week that without fuel, they would be unable to collect and distribute aid that reaches Gaza, warning they would be forced to \u201cwind down\u201d their relief efforts. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe should avoid conveying the message that few trucks a day means the siege is lifted for humanitarian aid. This is not true,\u201d Lazzarini added. \u201cThe current system in place is geared to fail. What is needed is meaningful and non-interrupted aid flow.\u201d <\/p>\n
A total of 74 trucks have entered the strip since humanitarian aid transfers resumed several days ago, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Thursday. Eight more trucks were expected Friday,\u00a0the UN said, adding that previously 450 trucks were going in each day. <\/p>\n
Lazzarini criticized Israel\u2019s questioning that aid would be used solely for civilians, stressing that UNRWA has strict vetting mechanisms in place.\u00a0\u201cIt pains me that humanitarian aid, a very basic right for people, is constantly questioned while at the same time despair is live streamed under our watch,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAll our vendors and partners are vetted against the sanctions list. We give aid to those who need it most. Our convoys and their routes are notified and deconflicted,\u201d he said. \u201cUNRWA does not and will not divert any humanitarian aid into the wrong hands.\u201d <\/p>\n
A 10-person team of medical staff and experts from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) crossed into Gaza Friday, the organization said in a statement, warning that \u201cthe humanitarian catastrophe is deepening by the hour.\u201d The ICRC said it had enough equipment to treat several thousand wounded people and enough water purification supplies to treat 50,000 liters of water. <\/p>\n
Aid group the Red Crescent Society said Friday that it has \u201ccompletely lost contact with the operations room in Gaza and all our teams operating there\u201d amid the telecommunications blackout. <\/p>\n
The deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza has sparked huge international concern but, nearly three weeks since the outbreak of violence, the world has so far failed to unite around a common position on the crisis. <\/p>\n
European leaders have stopped short of calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, instead appealing for humanitarian \u201cpauses.\u201d <\/p>\n