Humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza unbearable: Spanish premier

By Aysu Bicer

LONDON (AA) - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed support Wednesday for a letter sent by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to the UN Security Council in which he used his authority to address the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

Earlier on Wednesday, Guterres warned the Security Council that the conflict in the Gaza Strip "may aggravate existing threats to international peace and security."

Invoking Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since becoming the organization's top official in 2017, Guterres said in the letter: "More than eight weeks of hostilities in Gaza and Israel have created appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory."

Later in the day, Sanchez said on X that "the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is unbearable. I extend my full support to the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, in his invocation of Article 99 of the UN Charter."

"I fully share his reasons for appealing to the Security Council. Given the risk of imminent collapse of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the Security Council must act immediately and call for a humanitarian cease-fire," he added.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 16,248 Palestinians have been killed and more than 43,616 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.