Gaza: UN renews call for ‘immediate’ ceasefire

Hibapress

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday reiterated his call for an “immediate” ceasefire in Gaza and the “unconditional” release of all hostages.

In a statement read by his spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, at a briefing, the top UN official stressed that the violence must stop, adding that “all parties to the conflict have an obligation to comply with international humanitarian law at all times.”

Last June, the Security Council adopted a resolution presented by the United States which advocates an “immediate, total and complete” ceasefire in Gaza.

The text urges both parties to the conflict to implement “without delay and without conditions” the terms of the peace plan proposed on May 31 by US President Joe Biden.

The resolution provides for three stages to ensure a “durable and complete end to the fighting.” The first phase includes “an immediate, total and complete ceasefire with the release of hostages, including women, the elderly and the wounded, the return of the remains of some hostages and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners.”

The second phase calls for a definitive end to hostilities “in exchange for the release of all other hostages still in Gaza and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Strip.” The third phase, for its part, provides in particular for “a major multi-year reconstruction plan for Gaza.”