We Are Facing Severe Risk Of Collapse Of Humanitarian System – Guterres

The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has expressed his disappointment over the Security Council’s inability to call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

He criticized the divisions within the council, describing them as “geostrategic divisions” that have paralyzed the organization.

Speaking at the Doha Forum in Qatar, Guterres highlighted that these divisions hindered effective responses to the Israel-Hamas conflict, which commenced on October 7.

He emphasized that the delayed reaction of the council to the crisis had severely undermined its authority and credibility. Just two days earlier, a resolution urging a Gaza ceasefire was thwarted by a US veto, further contributing to the challenges faced by the international body.

“I reiterated my appeal for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared,” he told the forum.

“Regrettably, the Security Council failed to do it,” he added.

“I can promise, I will not give up.”

Following two months of intense conflict in Gaza, resulting in a tragic toll of over 17,700 casualties, predominantly among women and children, UN Secretary-General Guterres called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. The territory’s Hamas-run health ministry reported this information.

The secretary-general deployed the rarely-used Article 99 of the United Nations Charter to bring to the council’s attention “any matter which, in his opinion, may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security“.

A UN chief had not previously invoked the rule in decades.

“We are facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system,” Guterres told the Doha Forum.

“The situation is fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole and for peace and security in the region.”

The Israel-Hamas conflict escalated due to deadly attacks initiated by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel.

On October 7, militants crossed the border into Israel, resulting in the reported deaths of 1,200 people, primarily civilians, and the kidnapping of approximately 240 others, as stated by Israeli officials.