Antonio Gutteres Appeals for Aid to be Allowed into Gaza as He Reaffirms His Belief in a Two-State Solution

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a wide-ranging statement on the situation in Israel and the Gaza Strip.

He opened with an "utter condemnation of the abhorrent attacks by Hamas and others", likely referring to Islamic Jihad of Palestine.

At the time he spoke, the casualties inside Israel amounted to 800 dead and 2500 injured. He acknowledged that these numbers were likely to rise and mentioned that about 100 Israelis – both civilian and military – have been captured by armed Palestinian groups. The number of fatalities inside Israel is now at 900.

He called for a ceasefire, noting with alarm that Israeli retaliatory strikes inside Gaza had already "killed 500" and "injured 3000". In just one day, the number of dead inside Gaza has risen to 800.

Whilst he urged Hamas to release hostages, his appeal to Israel was to respect international military law in the conduct of its operations: "Civilian infrastructure must never be a target. We already have reports of Israeli missiles striking health facilities inside Gaza as well as multi-storied residential towers and a mosque Two UNRWA schools sheltering displaced families in Gaza were also hit."

Emphasising the devastating impact of strikes on UN facilities, he said: "Some 137,000 people are currently sheltering in UNRWA facilities – with the number increasing as heavy shelling and airstrikes continue."

Furthermore, he voiced opposition to Israel's intended siege of Gaza, reminding the latter that Gaza is already under a crippling blockade – which was imposed by Israel in 2005: "I am deeply distressed by today's announcement that Israel will initiate a complete siege of the Gaza Strip, nothing allowed in – no electricity, food, or fuel. The humanitarian situation in Gaza was extremely dire before these hostilities; now it will only deteriorate exponentially."

He appealed for the UN to be able to get critical supplies across: "Medical equipment, food, fuel and other humanitarian supplies are desperately needed, along with access for humanitarian personnel. Relief and entry of essential supplies into Gaza must be facilitated – and the UN will continue efforts to provide aid to respond to these needs."

According to the United Nations, roughly 6,400 Palestinians and 300 Israelis have been killed in the ongoing conflict since 2008, not counting the recent fatalities.

As things stand, Al Jazeera is reporting indiscriminate bombing inside Gaza, which is the most densely populated enclave on earth. These are not surgical strikes directed at Hamas or Islamic Jihad militants.

At least 33 Palestinian children were killed in the retaliatory airstrikes launched into Gaza by Israel, according to the advocacy group Defense for Children Palestine.

Hundreds of apartments and homes have been destroyed in the Gaza Strip, including refugee camps, leaving more than 123,000 people displaced, according to the United Nations.

More than 73,000 people are sheltering in schools. Hospitals are struggling to cope with the scores of injured people.

Gaza's main hospital, Beit Hanoun Hospital, has been heavily damaged and as a consequence, is out of service after Israeli forces repeatedly targeted the area, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Speaking on the dire shortage of medical assistance, Ayman Al-Djaroucha, deputy coordinator of Doctors Without Border/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Gaza, said, "Hospitals are overcrowded with injured people, there is a shortage of drugs and [medical supplies], and a shortage of fuel for generators."

A main communication centre in Gaza was also destroyed by airstrikes, making it hard to get internet access or phone service.

Unlike Israel, the Gaza Strip has no air raid sirens or bomb shelters.

"Ambulances can't be used right now because they're being hit by airstrikes," said Darwin Diaz, MSF medical coordinator in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said that all food, fuel, electricity, and other necessities will be blocked from entering the Gaza Strip.

Furthermore, press freedom monitors have said 6 journalists have been killed.

Of these, three were standing by to film the bombing of a residential building which the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) had stated it was going to hit after civilians had evacuated.

In his last words before being killed, Saeed al-Taweel, editor-in-chief of the Al-Khamsa News website, said: "Unfortunately, they have sent a warning notice to the Hiji building just now that it will be bombed."

Al-Taweel, Mohammed Subh and Hisham Alnwajha were standing at a safe distance, hundreds of metres from the stated target. But the air attack instead hit a different building, much nearer to them.

Antonio Guterres ended his statement by emphasising the two-state solution that has recently looked more and more out-of-reach as Israel's political establishment continues its foray into increasingly hard-right territory: "This most recent violence does not come in a vacuum. The reality is that it grows out of a long-standing conflict, with a 56-year-long occupation and no political end in sight. It's time to end this vicious circle of bloodshed, hatred and polarisation. Israel must see its legitimate needs for security materialised – and Palestinians must see a clear perspective for the establishment of their own state realised."

Hamas' surprise attack on Israel has brought on this latest bout of carnage in the long-standing Israel-Palestine conflict. Although the Holy Land has for millennia held significance for all three Abrahamic religions, the dispute in its modern form stems from the Balfour Declaration of 1917 – which proposed a homeland for Jewish people in Palestine.

Whilst the text of the Declaration referenced the rights of the existing Palestinian population in passing, in practice, no such safeguards were put in place. Furthermore, in certain instances, British authorities themselves forcibly displaced locals to make way for Jewish settlers.

Fast forward to the 60's and the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, lit a fuse under the already volatile region.

The takeover of Palestine by militant group Hamas in the 2000s was then swiftly followed by a blockade imposed by neighbouring Israel and Egypt in 2007.

However, some commentators point out that precursor actions to the blockade were already underway before Hamas took power, for instance, the 2005 Israeli bombing of the airport in Gaza.