RAFAH: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Egypt’s border with the Gazan city of Rafah on Saturday to reiterate pleas for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
His visit comes after the UN Security Council’s failure to pass a resolution to halt the Israeli offensive on Gaza, which is now entering its sixth month with a death toll nearing 32,000.
Speaking at the border, he urged the world to remind Gazans they are not alone.
“I am deeply troubled to know during this holy month of Ramadan that there are those who will not be able to have a proper iftar,” Guterres said.
He added that it is “a moral outrage” that there are thousands of aid trucks parked on the Egyptian side of the border awaiting access, while people in Gaza are facing starvation.
“While nothing justifies the actions of October 7, nothing justifies the collective punishment of the Palestinian people,” Guterres said. “There are hardships, houses demolished, entire families and generations wiped out, while hunger stalks the population.”
He urged people to “stand on the right side of history,” adding, “It is time to silence the guns. We need a ceasefire. I will not give up. We should not give up, for the sake of humanity.”
Guterres also called for funding and support of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
Prior to his press conference at the crossing, the secretary-general was received by Sinai governor Mohamad Shusha at El-Arish airport.
Shusha said that some 7,000 trucks are currently waiting in North Sinai to deliver aid to Gaza, but that inspection procedures demanded by Israel have held up the flow of aid.
Guterres also visited Palestinian evacuees from Gaza receiving treatment at Arish General Hospital in Sinai and said he was “moved” by their spirit.
