UN chief describes death and destruction in Gaza as the worst he has ever seen

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. chief said Monday the United Nations has offered to monitor any ceasefire in Gaza and called for an end to the worst deaths and destruction he has seen in his more than seven years in office.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in an interview with the Associated Press that it was “unrealistic” to assume that the UN could play a role in Gaza in the future, either by administering the area or providing a peacekeeping force, because Israel would probably not accept such a role for the UN.

However, he said that “the UN is ready to support any ceasefire.” The United Nations has had a military observation mission in the Middle East since 1948, known as UNTSO, and he said: “From our side, this was one of the hypotheses we put on the table.”

“Of course we are ready to do whatever the international community asks of us,” Guterres said. “The question is whether the parties would accept it, and in particular whether Israel would accept it.”

Israel's Military attack on Gazatriggered by Hamas attacks in southern Israel on October 7, has dragged on for 11 months, with recent ceasefire talks failing to achieve a breakthrough and violence breaking out in the West Bank. reach new heights.

Guterres stressed the urgency of a ceasefire now, saying: “The scale of suffering we are witnessing in Gaza is unprecedented in my tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations. I have never seen such a level of death and destruction as in Gaza in recent months.”

The war has killed over 40,900 Palestinianssaid the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count. The war has caused enormous destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants, often multiple times.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government have accused the UN of being anti-Israel and have been highly critical of the UN's humanitarian operations in Gaza. Faced with protests at home and increasing pressure from allies, Netanyahu has resisted pressure for a ceasefire agreement, saying: “Nobody will tell me what to do.”

With regard to a ceasefire, Guterres stressed that a two-state solution to the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not only feasible, but “the only solution”.

The United States and others support a Palestinian state, but Netanyahu, who leads the most conservative government in Israel's history, opposes calls for a two-state solution.

Guterres asked rhetorically whether the alternative was feasible.

“This means that there are five million Palestinians living there who have no rights in a state,” he said. “Is this possible? Can we accept a similar idea to what we had in South Africa in the past?”

He was referring to South Africa's apartheid system from 1948 to the early 1990s, when the white minority population marginalized and segregated people of color, especially black people.

“I don't think two peoples can live together unless they live on a basis of equality and unless they live on a basis of mutual respect – mutual respect for their rights,” Guterres said. “The two-state solution is, in my opinion, a must if we want peace in the Middle East.”