Ceasefire in Gaza not enough for UN’s Secretary General
By La Shawn Pagán
Although the recent ceasefire in Gaza is the longest to date, the UN Secretary General Ban-Ki
Moon says that’s not enough.
“I strongly hope that a durable ceasefire will be reached soon,” said Ban to members of the press at
the United Nations Headquarters in New York at the daily noon briefing on Tuesday. “We must use
this cessation of hostilities to address urgent humanitarian needs – the toll of death and destruction
is staggering.”
Preliminary information reports that nearly 2000 Palestinians have been killed – a total that
included an estimated 459 children.
“There were more children killed in this Gaza conflict than in the previous two crises combined,”
said he Secretary General.
The most recent ceasefire which began on Sunday at 21:00GMT was agreed to, after Egypt said
it had received a simultaneous consensus from all sides after it called for all parties to “reach a
comprehensive and permanent ceasefire.” Still, this is the second attempt at cessation in Gaza, the
first only lasting around 90 minutes.
With the recent cessation, the Secretary General says that he is calling for an extended investigation
of the repeated shelling of those UN facilities that have harbored civilians from the conflict, saying
that he expects “accountability for the innocent lives lost and the damage incurred.”
Moreover, the Ban questions the Israel’s actions that have claimed the lives of thousands of people.
“Most of Gaza’s households have little or no water supply – hospitals meant to cope with disaster
are themselves disaster zones,” said Ban. “Israel’s duty to protect its citizens from rocket attacks
by Hamas and other threats is beyond question. At the same time the fighting has raised serious
questions about Israel’s respect for the principles of distinction and proportionality – reports of
militant activity does not justify jeopardizing the lives and safety of many thousands of innocent
civilians.”
ENW/LSP
Photo by Luiz Rampelotto/EuropaNewswire