UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at a briefing in New York. UN chief calls on Israel to change military tactics to avoid ‘catastrophic’ casualties Peace and Security
Israel must make significant changes to its fighting methods in the Gaza Strip to avoid a “catastrophic” number of civilian casualties. The Secretary-General of the United Nations stated this, speaking at a briefing at the UN headquarters in New York on Friday.
Renewing his condemnation of the “heinous” Hamas terrorist attack on Israel six months ago, António Guterres stressed that nothing could justify the violence unleashed by Palestinian militants on October 7 last year.
“I again strongly condemn the use of sexual violence, torture, mutilation and abduction of civilians, rocket attacks on civilian targets and the use of people as human shields,” the UN chief said, reiterating calls for the unconditional release of hostages still held in Gaza Strip.
“After meeting with family members of those in captivity, I carry with me every day their suffering, uncertainty about the future and deep pain,” he added António Guterres.
The last six months of the Israeli military campaign, the UN head continued, have brought death and destruction to the Palestinians: more than 32 thousand people have died, the vast majority of them women and children.
Lives are shattered, respect for international law is undermined
“Lives have been shattered and respect for international law has been undermined,” said Antonio Guterres. The resulting humanitarian catastrophe, he said, is unprecedented: more than a million people are facing catastrophic hunger, children are dying due to lack of food and water.
“This is incomprehensible and completely preventable,” the UN chief said, reiterating that nothing could justify such brutal collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
António Guterres noted that he is deeply concerned by reports that the Israeli military is using artificial intelligence to identify targets during the bombing of densely populated areas of Gaza.
No part of life and death decisions should be left to the cold calculation of algorithms
“No part of life and death decisions should be left to the cold calculation of algorithms,” the UN chief said, adding that artificial intelligence should only be used for the benefit of people.
António Guterres recalled that 196 humanitarian workers have died in the current conflict, including 175 UN employees.
“The information war has further aggravated the trauma – it is happening “obscuring” the facts and shifting the blame,” said António Guterres, emphasizing that Israel is further aggravating the situation by denying journalists entry into Gaza.