'Enough is enough': UN agencies call for ceasefire as Gaza officials report death toll over 10,000
CBC
Israeli fighter jets struck 450 Hamas targets in Gaza and troops seized a militant compound in the past 24 hours, the Israel Defence Forces said on Monday, while the Palestinian enclave's health ministry said the airstrikes killed dozens of people.
A Reuters journalist in the Gaza Strip described the overnight bombardment from the air, ground and sea as one of the most intense since Israel launched its offensive in response to a surprise attack by Hamas on southern Israel on Oct. 7. The attack killed about 1,400 people, including several Canadians.
Israel, which says its forces have encircled Gaza city, faces mounting pressure to avoid civilian casualties after refusing to countenance a ceasefire until the hostages are released, and a U.S. diplomatic blitz in the region is intended to reduce risks of the conflict escalating.
The heads of several major United Nations bodies on Monday made a united call for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.
The 18 signatories include Volker Turk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organization, and Martin Griffiths, UN aid chief.
"An entire population is besieged and under attack, denied access to the essentials for survival, bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals and places of worship. This is unacceptable," they said in a joint statement.
"We need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. It's been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now."
As well, the G7 group of countries including Canada are set to meet midweek in Tokyo this week to discuss the war, which several global powers have warned could spiral and engulf the Middle East.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out a ceasefire until the return of over 200 hostages captured by Hamas, the group founded in 1987 and designated a terrorist group by Israel, the U.S., Canada and the European Union.
Israel said 31 soldiers have been killed since it began expanded ground operations in Gaza on Oct. 27.
At least 10,022 Palestinians have been killed, including 4,104 children, in Israeli strikes on Gaza since Oct. 7, the health ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza said on Monday. Some Western intelligence agencies have disputed the figures being given by the health ministry, though its reporting in previous conflicts have been viewed as generally accurate.
The health ministry said dozens of people were killed by the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City and further south in Gaza neighbourhoods such as Zawaida and Deir Al-Balah. Hamas-affiliated Al-Aqsa TV quoted medical sources as saying at least 75 Palestinians were killed and 106 hurt in the attacks.
Palestinian health officials said eight people were killed in an airstrike overnight on the Rantissi cancer hospital in Gaza City. Israel's military said it was looking into the report.
The Israeli army said its strikes hit "tunnels, terrorists, military compounds, observation posts, and anti-tank missile launch posts." Ground troops killed several Hamas fighters while taking a militant compound containing observation posts, training areas and underground tunnels, it said.
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