North Gaza situation 'apocalyptic': UN agency chiefs

The unfolding situation in the northern Gaza Strip is "apocalyptic", United Nations chiefs said Friday, warning that its entire population was at "imminent risk" of death.

They said the entire Middle East region was now on a precipice and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

Israel launched a major air and ground assault in northern Gaza last month, saying it wanted to stop Hamas militants regrouping there.

"The situation unfolding in North Gaza is apocalyptic," said the joint statement from heads of organisations that form the UN Inter-Agency Standing Committee.

"The area has been under siege for almost a month, denied basic aid and life-saving supplies while bombardment and other attacks continue. Just in the past few days, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, most of them women and children, and thousands have once again been forcibly displaced.

"The entire Palestinian population in North Gaza is at imminent risk of dying from disease, famine and violence."

They urged all parties fighting in the besieged Palestinian territory to protect civilians, and called on Israel "to cease its assault on Gaza and on the humanitarians trying to help".

"Humanitarian aid cannot keep up with the scale of the needs due to the access constraints. Basic, life-saving goods are not available. Humanitarians are not safe to do their work and are blocked by Israeli forces and by insecurity from reaching people in need," they said.

"Humanitarian relief must be facilitated, and we urge all parties to provide unimpeded access to affected people," while hospitals "should not turn into battlegrounds".

The statement was signed by the heads of the UN humanitarian, health, food, rights, migration, refugee, development, children and women's agencies, among others.

"The entire region is on the edge of a precipice. An immediate cessation of hostilities and a sustained, unconditional ceasefire are long overdue," they said.

Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel last year triggered the war and resulted in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel's retaliatory bombardment and ground war have killed 43,259 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to data from the health ministry, figures the UN considers reliable.