GENEVA: The UN’s health agency said Wednesday its workers will remain in Gaza City despite calls from Israel’s military for people to flee an assault it is mounting there.
“To civilians in Gaza: WHO and partners remain in Gaza City,” the World Health Organization said on its X account.
Israel’s army is intensifying its attacks on Gaza City — the main urban center in the besieged Gaza Strip — with the goal of seizing the city. This week, it warned civilians there to leave.
The UN estimates that around one million Palestinians live in and around Gaza City.
“WHO is appalled by the latest evacuation order,” the head of the UN agency, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on X.
He said the Israeli demand that the city’s one million people go to what Israel was calling a “humanitarian zone” in the south of the Gaza Strip was unfeasible.
“The zone has neither the size nor scale of services to support those already there, let alone new arrivals,” he said.
Tedros pointed out that half of the functioning hospitals left in the Gaza Strip were in Gaza City, and the territory’s “crippled health system cannot afford to lose any of these remaining facilities.”
He urged the international community to “act,” saying that, in Gaza, “this catastrophe is human-made, and the responsibility rests with us all.”
Israel has been waging offensive operations in Gaza since October 2023, following a deadly attack launched from there by Hamas that resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 64,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.
The UN has declared famine in parts of Gaza, which Israel contests.
WHO says to remain in Gaza City despite Israel’s call to leave
https://arab.news/2xfu6
WHO says to remain in Gaza City despite Israel’s call to leave
- “To civilians in Gaza: WHO and partners remain in Gaza City,” the World Health Organization said on its X account
Oman and Lebanon call for full Israeli withdrawal, urge end to attacks
- Joseph Aoun and Sultan Haitham bin Tariq make a joint call for an immediate halt to Israeli attacks on Lebanese territory
- Reaffirmation of the unified Arab position on ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders
BEIRUT: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and his Omani counterpart Sultan Haitham bin Tariq on Wednesday made a joint call for an immediate halt to Israeli attacks on Lebanese territory and a full withdrawal from all occupied Arab lands, warning that continued violations pose a direct threat to regional stability.
The statement came during a high-level summit in Muscat, where both leaders voiced “serious concern over the ongoing Israeli aggression” and described the occupation as a “clear violation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and other international resolutions.
The two sides also expressed support for international efforts to de-escalate tensions, stabilize the situation on the ground, facilitate the return of displaced persons, and advance post-conflict reconstruction.
Aoun led a Lebanese ministerial delegation to Oman that included Lebanon’s ministers of foreign affairs, interior, defense, health, and agriculture for talks with Omani officials.
The joint statement emphasized the strengthening of bilateral ties and expanding cooperation in key sectors including politics, the economy, investment, banking, tourism, transport, and logistics.
Both sides called for early preparations to hold the first session of the Omani-Lebanese Joint Committee, chaired by the two foreign ministers in Muscat, and to pursue new agreements and memorandums of understanding intended to enhance collaboration in trade, culture, and science. The statement also highlighted the need to boost private sector engagement in shared development opportunities.
The Omani side reaffirmed its full support for Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity, as well as for strengthening Lebanese state institutions, particularly the army and legitimate security forces, and backing the country’s ongoing economic, financial, and administrative reforms.
The two sides reaffirmed the unified Arab position on ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. They also underscored the importance of strengthening Arab solidarity, respecting the sovereignty of states, and upholding the principles of good neighborliness and international law.
Aoun’s official visit to Oman took place within the context of Muscat’s established role as a regional and international mediator. During his meetings, Aoun praised Oman’s diplomatic standing and approach, describing it as “wise and responsible.”
He commended Oman’s foreign policy, grounded in dialogue, mediation, balance, and good neighborliness, saying it had earned the sultanate a “distinguished status and a pivotal role in promoting stability and resolving conflicts through peaceful means.”
Aoun said that, in Lebanon, “we hold this wise approach in high regard and deeply value the sultanate’s steadfast support for Lebanon in various international forums, as well as its support as we confront the challenges before us.”
For his part, Sultan Haitham bin Tariq reaffirmed Oman’s continued commitment to Lebanon’s stability and its close monitoring of the latest developments in the country.
He emphasized the deep-rooted relations between the two countries and the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation and coordination. The sultan also praised the positive contributions of the Lebanese community in Oman.
On the sidelines of the visit, Lebanese Interior Minister Ahmed Al-Hajjar held a meeting with his Omani counterpart Hamoud bin Faisal Al-Busaidi at Al-Alam Palace in Muscat. They underlined the enhancement of joint cooperation, particularly in security and policing.
According to a joint statement, the discussions also covered Lebanon’s efforts to consolidate internal security and maintain stability.
Participating on the Omani side in the expanded talks were Al-Busaidi; Shihab bin Tarik Al-Said, deputy prime minister for defense affairs; Badr bin Hamad Al-Busaidi, foreign minister of Oman; Hamad bin Said Al-Aufi, head of the private office; Mahad bin Said Ba’owain, minister of labor and head of the honorary mission; Saud bin Hamoud Al-Habsi, minister of agricultural, fisheries and water resources; and Hilal bin Ali Al-Sabti, minister of health.
