Here's the latest from the UN

More than 100 days have passed since over 1,200 Israelis and others were killed in the horrific terror attacks launched by Hamas against Israel, with over 250 people taken hostage.

“These have been 100 days of heartache and anguish,” says United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres , demanding yet again the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

The past 100 days have been heartbreaking and catastrophic for Palestinian civilians in Gaza as well. More than 25,000 people, mainly women and children, have reportedly been killed in operations launched by Israeli forces. More than 60,000 others have been injured.

“The entire population of Gaza is enduring destruction at a scale and speed without parallel in recent history,” says the Secretary-General, stressing : “Nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”

With winter bearing down, 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza face inhumane, squalid conditions, struggling to simply make it through another day without proper shelter, heating, sanitary facilities, food, and drinking water.

“Everyone in Gaza is hungry,” laments the Secretary-General, as a quarter of Gaza’s population – more than half a million people – grapples with catastrophic levels of food insecurity.

At the same time, diseases are rampantly spreading as Gaza’s health system collapses. This means that people not only risk being killed or injured by relentless bombardments; they also run a growing chance of contracting infectious diseases like hepatitis A, dysentery, cholera.

In the face of colossal human suffering and enormous obstacles, United Nations humanitarian operations are striving to help people in need. They have been working to distribute ready-to-eat meals and other food items,, while also delivering medicines, medical supplies, water, hygiene kits, and shelter items.?

Despite those efforts, no effective humanitarian aid operation can function under the current conditions. To reach people in desperate need of assistance, a set of operational requirements must be met: safety guarantees, equipment, more crossing points into Gaza, access to the north, and visas for humanitarians.

In that context, Secretary-General António Guterres has repeated his call for rapid, safe, unhindered, expanded and sustained humanitarian access throughout Gaza, and an end to all violations of International Humanitarian Law.?

Amid fears of the current conflict spilling over to the wider region, the Secretary-General has reaffirmed the imperative of seeking a durable peace: “A lasting end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only come through a two-State solution.”

“The right of the Palestinian people to build their own fully independent state must be recognized by all. And any refusal to accept the two-State solution by any party must be firmly rejected.”

You can stay updated on the latest developments from the Middle East and around the world by following the UN’s page on LinkedIn and gain further insights and perspectives from UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ LinkedIn account .