Guterres to reduce UN aid ‘footprint’ inside Gaza following ceasefire collapse

March 25, 2025 by United Nations Leave a Comment

This article is published in association with United Nations.

The UN Secretary-General on Monday took the “difficult decision” to reduce the aid operation inside the Gaza Strip following the resumption of deadly Israeli airstrikes – but pledged that “the UN is not leaving” the enclave.

“In the past week, Israel carried out devastating strikes on Gaza, claiming the lives of hundreds of civilians, including United Nations personnel, with no humanitarian aid being allowed to enter the Strip since early March,” said a statement released by his Spokesperson.

“As a result, the Secretary-General has taken the difficult decision to reduce the Organization’s footprint in Gaza, even as humanitarian needs soar and our concern over the protection of civilians intensifies.”

The UN stressed that it remained fully committed to providing lifesaving aid. Around a third of the approximately 100 international staff working in Gaza will be temporarily relocated.

After cutting off all humanitarian aid into Gaza for three weeks – the longest suspension since 7 October 2023 – Israeli officials have indicated that they intend to continue their military campaign across Gaza and annex territory to pressure Hamas.

Strike on UN compound from ‘Israeli tank’

The UN Spokesperson said that based on currently available information, “the strikes hitting a UN compound in Deir Al Balah on 19 March were caused by an Israeli tank.”.

In the aftermath of Wednesday’s strike, Israel said it had not been behind the blast.

“The strikes claimed the life of a UN colleague from Bulgaria and left six others – from France, Moldova, North Macedonia, Palestine and the United Kingdom – with severe injuries, some of them life-altering,” Monday’s statement continued.

The location of the compound was well known to all the parties to the conflict.

“I reiterate that all parties to the conflict are bound by international law to protect the absolute inviolability of UN premises,” the statement from Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric continued.

“Without this, our colleagues face intolerable risks as they work to save the lives of civilians.”

The Secretary-General is demanding a full, thorough and independent investigation into Wednesday’s deadly strike, protection of all civilian life in the renewed fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas and the resumption of aid deliveries.

Furthermore, all hostages “must be released immediately and unconditionally”.

‘Relentless bombardment’ again

One week since Israeli bombing started again in Gaza, UN humanitarians have described deadly attacks hitting health workers, ambulances and hospitals.

Senior UN humanitarian in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Jonathan Whittall, said that hundreds of children and adults have been killed since the ceasefire broke down between Hamas and Israel.

The UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, also said on Monday that 124,000 people in the enclave have been forced to flee what it called “relentless bombardment”.

“Families carry what little they have with no shelter, no safety, and nowhere left to go; the Israeli authorities have cut off all aid,” UNRWA said in an online statement – warning that food is scarce and prices are soaring as the Israeli blockade continues.

Relief chief Tom Fletcher tweeted that he was continuing to receive horrific reports from Gaza of more health workers, ambulances and hospitals attacked as they try to save survivors. Mr. Fletcher said we all must demand that hospitals and medics must not be targeted.

In southern Gaza on Sunday, several casualties were reported after the surgical department of Nasser Medical Complex was hit and caught fire, Mr. Dujarric told journalists in New York at the daily briefing.

In Rafah, ambulances were reportedly hit in Tal Al Sultan, resulting in several casualties. The Palestine Red Crescent Society said four of its ambulances were targeted, as well as 10 team members carrying out humanitarian work.

“Communication with the team has been completely lost for 30 hours, and at this point, their fate remains unknown,” the UN Spokesperson continued.

Call for additional emergency teams

As hostilities continue across Gaza, aid coordination office, OCHA, and partners called for the entry of additional emergency medical teams into Gaza to help health workers already on the ground who are “exhausted and, of course, overwhelmed.”

Israeli authorities on Sunday issued a new evacuation order in Rafah, covering around two per cent of the Strip and affecting five neighbourhoods.

“With this latest directive, the overall area designated for evacuation over the past week covers an estimated 14 per cent of the Gaza Strip – along with vast ‘no go’ zones along the borders and the Netzarim corridor,” Mr. Dujarric said.

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Countries adopted on Saturday a new global blueprint for tackling rapidly evolving forms of crime, as the UN’s largest gathering on crime prevention and criminal justice opened in Abu Dhabi with a call for stronger international cooperation. The Abu Dhabi Declaration was adopted by acclamation at the opening of the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, bringing governments together around challenges ranging from cybercrime and fraud to the growing criminal exploitation of digital technology. The Declaration highlights an increasingly complex landscape in which services, infrastructure and technology can be exploited by criminals, including emerging trends described as “crime as a service” and “violence as a service”. At the same time, countries committed to making greater use of technology themselves, including by digitalizing justice systems and harnessing artificial intelligence in criminal justice responses. The Declaration stresses that safeguards must accompany those changes, including human oversight, transparency, due process and data protection. ‘Justice cannot be a privilege’ In a video message to the Congress, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said the meeting was taking place at a time of profound change. “Justice cannot be a privilege. It must protect every person, uphold every person’s rights and leave no one behind,” said Ms. Mohamed. “This Congress is an opportunity to renew our shared commitment to justice and the rule of law, and to translate that commitment into action.” Countries are already being encouraged to put the Declaration into practice through the voluntary Pledge4Justice initiative, under which participating governments are announcing concrete, time-bound actions on crime prevention and criminal justice through 2031. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre with its curved glass tower and surrounding buildings reflected in calm water at dusk. UNODC The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre where the 15th UN Crime Congress is set to take place. From Kyoto to Abu Dhabi Opening the Congress, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Executive Director Monica Juma framed the gathering as both a response to a changing criminal landscape and a test of international cooperation. “Today, the world convenes in Abu Dhabi to reaffirm that the rule of law and criminal justice are essential to the safety and security of people and the planet,” said Ms. Juma. “At a time when confidence in multilateralism is faltering, let Abu Dhabi be a testament to international cooperation.” Five years after the previous Congress in Kyoto, Japan, Ms. Juma said the world had reached another “inflection point”, with technology and artificial intelligence advancing at extraordinary speed. The same platforms connecting billions of people can also connect criminals, she warned, while digital currencies can conceal illicit profits and digital tools can be used to deceive, manipulate and exploit. Technology, she argued, is not simply accelerating crime but changing its character, while organized criminal networks increasingly exploit weaknesses across borders and institutions. Tweet URL Protecting people as the ‘north star’ Behind those broad trends, Ms. Juma urged delegates to focus on the people most exposed to harm, including children recruited by gangs, women facing violence at home or online, people unable to obtain legal assistance and young people lured into scam networks with promises of a better future. “Protecting these people must be the measure against which we judge our efforts over the coming week,” she said. “It must be our north star.” She called for laws and institutions capable of keeping pace with changing threats, greater access to justice and legal aid, and technology that serves as “a force for good” rather than an accelerator of harm. And while welcoming the Abu Dhabi Declaration as a starting point, Ms. Juma stressed that its impact would ultimately depend on implementation. A week focused on justice Hosted by the United Arab Emirates, the Congress runs through 1 October under the theme Protecting People and Planet in the Digital Age. Some 119 countries are represented, alongside more than 40 justice ministers and other senior officials, with over 5,100 participants from governments, civil society, academia and the private sector. Plenary meetings, workshops, side events and exhibitions will run throughout the session. Organizers are also billing this as the most youth-inclusive Crime Congress yet. Young people are participating in workshops, contributing to follow-up efforts and taking part in a dedicated Youth Lab and art exhibition, following a Youth Forum held ahead of the Congress on 24 and 25 September. UNODC serves as secretariat of the Congress and will support implementation of the Abu Dhabi Declaration.

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