UN chief warns Gaza’s ‘last lifelines’ near total collapse as humanitarian crisis worsens

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday condemned the fast-deteriorating conditions in Gaza, warning that vital aid efforts are collapsing.

Israeli bombardments have intensified in recent days just as aid deliveries are being impeded, undermined and endangered, he said.

“The last lifelines keeping people alive are collapsing,” Mr Guterres said in a statement, expressing deep concern over “growing reports of children and adults suffering from malnutrition”.

He also criticised Israel’s order for people to leave parts of Deir Al Balah, home to tens of thousands of people in southern Gaza. It will push people “into more desperate conditions and further displacement and restricts the United Nations’ ability to deliver life-saving aid”.

Israeli tanks entered Deir Al Balah's southern and eastern districts for the first time on Monday. Israel said its military believes hostages may be held there.

The area is packed with Palestinians displaced during more than 21 months of war in Gaza, hundreds of whom fled west or south after Israel issued an evacuation order, saying it sought to destroy Hamas infrastructure and capabilities.

“UN staff remain in Deir Al Balah, and two UN guesthouses have been struck, despite parties having been informed of the locations of UN premises, which are inviolable. These locations – as with all civilian sites – must be protected, regardless of evacuation orders,” the UN chief said.

The warning came as more than two dozen western nations called for an immediate end to the conflict, stating that civilian suffering had “reached new depths” amid Israel’s expanded military operations in central Gaza.

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned that conditions in Gaza are “near impossible”.

Israel's evacuation order cuts through “Deir Al Balah all the way to the Mediterranean Sea, further fragmenting the Strip and pushing people into overcrowded, unsafe areas with no shelter or essential supplies,” OCHA said.

Initial UN estimates suggest between 50,000 and 80,000 people are in the targeted zone, including some 30,000 displaced individuals sheltering in 57 sites.

The mass evacuation order, the UN agency said, has “dealt yet another devastating blow to the already fragile lifelines keeping people alive across the Gaza Strip.”

The deepening crisis was underscored on Sunday when a World Food Programme (WFP) convoy carrying food supplies into Gaza came under fire near an Israeli checkpoint.

In a statement, the WFP said crowds of starving civilians gathered as the lorries approached, only to be hit by gunfire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other forces. Dozens of people were killed.

“The agency is deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives,” the WFP said, adding that many more suffered life-threatening injuries.

“These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation.”