UN Chief: Aid to be delivered to Gaza in terms of Egypt’s laws

CAIRO – 20 October 2023: Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres said that Palestinians should not be punished twice with war and withholding aid. This came in a press conference held at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing on Friday.

He added that Egypt is the main provider of hope to the people of Gaza, continuing that “Egypt is a sovereign state and we will bring aid into Gaza according to its laws.”

Guterres noted that despite the agreement to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, there are conditions that hinder its access to the strip. “I called for an immediate ceasefire to deliver humanitarian aid,” he stressed.

The secretary-general of the United Nations arrived Friday at Al-Arish Airport, and inspected the humanitarian aid that should be delivered to the civilians of besieged Gaza.

He said that the UNRWA will be responsible for distributing aid in the Gaza Strip, adding that the largest possible amount of humanitarian aid should be allowed into the strip.

Hamas' Qassam Brigades launched on October 7 an offensive on Israeli settlements in the occupied lands by firing 5,000 missiles in 20 minutes, invoking airstrikes on Gaza that incurred scores of casualties and have not ceased until present.

Hamas fighters launched their military operation to end the suffering of the Palestinians under the Israeli siege in the Gaza Strip, and stop the provocative actions of the Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and Jerusalem.

In the latest death toll announced by the Palestinian Ministry of Health, a total of 4,137 people have been killed (the majority are women and children), and other 13,162 were injured as a result of the Israeli aggression on Gaza and the West Bank

Israel announced that the number of deaths reached 1,400 Israelis and more than 3,400 others were injured.