UN official 'urgently' calls for an end to Israel-Palestine conflict

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The head of the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean regional office welcomed a hostage swap deal Wednesday but said Israelis and Palestinians need a sustained cease-fire.

Ahmed Al-Mandhari expressed sorrow for the death of Dima Alhaj, a WHO staffer who was killed Tuesday in the Gaza Strip.

"We are reminded that in Gaza today, nowhere is safe for civilians, including our own colleagues and other members of the United Nations family," he said at an online news conference on health emergencies in the occupied Palestinian territory and Sudan.

He noted the ongoing attacks, stressing that civilians are being killed in their homes, camps and shelters, schools and even while receiving care at hospitals. 

"While we are encouraged by the announcement overnight of a temporary cease-fire associated with hostage and prisoner release, what the peoples of the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel need is a sustained cease-fire," said Al-Mandhari.

"What we need is the leaders and fighting forces of both sides to put the health and welfare of their people first," he said.

Noing that people are being denied food, safe water, health care, shelter and protection in Gaza, Al-Mandhari said almost three-quarters of the Gaza Strip’s entire population has been internally displaced, "often moving multiple times to escape active conflict. "

"We urgently call, again, for an end to the conflict; for the protection of health workers, patients and health facilities; for the unconditional release of hostages; and for unimpeded, sustained access for life-saving health aid into the Gaza Strip," added Al-Mandhari.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7.

Authorities in Gaza said Tuesday that the death toll from the Israeli attacks on the besieged enclave has since risen past 14,100, including more than 5,800 children and 3,900 women.

The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is around 1,200, according to official figures.