‘Even wars have rules’: UN chief Guterres on Israel’s ultimatum for Gaza evacuation

UN officials in Gaza on Thursday (October 12) were informed by their liaison officers in the Israeli military that the entire population of northern Gaza, approximately 1.1 million, should relocate to the southern part within the next 24 hours.

The same order applied to all UN staff and those sheltered in UN facilities – including schools, health centres, and clinics.

“Moving more than one million people across a densely-populated warzone to a place with no food, water, or accommodation, when the entire territory is under siege, is extremely dangerous – and in some cases, simply not possible,” Guterres told reporters on Friday (October 13).

The UN Secretary-General made those remarks before heading to a Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

Voicing his deep concern, the UN chief said that the “hospitals in the south of Gaza are already at capacity and will not be able to accept thousands of new patients from the north. The health system is also on the brink of collapse and morgues are overflowing,” he said.

Guterres said 11 healthcare staff have been killed while on duty and there have been 34 attacks on health facilities in the past few days.

Describing the situation in Gaza as reaching a “dangerous new low,” he said the entire territory faces a water crisis as infrastructure has been damaged and there is no electricity to power pumps and desalination plants.

Asserting that “even wars have rules”, Guterres said there is an immediate need for humanitarian access throughout Gaza for the UN to "get fuel, food and water to everyone in need."

"International humanitarian law and human rights law must be respected and upheld; civilians must be protected and never used as shields. All hostages in Gaza must be released immediately,” he said.

Guterres underscored that it is imperative that all parties – and those with influence over them – do everything possible to achieve these steps.