The United Nations has warned that Israel’s plan to seize Gaza City risks triggering “another calamity” in the Gaza Strip with far-reaching consequences. UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas Miroslav Jenca told an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council that if implemented, the plan could result in the displacement of all civilians from Gaza City by October 7, 2025, affecting some 800,000 people, many of whom are already previously displaced.
“This will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings and destruction, compounding the unbearable suffering of the population,” Jenca said. Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour condemned Israel’s plan, stating that it aims for “the destruction of the Palestinian people through forced transfer and massacres to facilitate its annexation of our land”. He emphasized that “what will force Israel to change course is our ability to transform justified condemnation into just actions … History will judge us all”.
The international community has widely condemned Israel’s plan, with some of its allies warning that it risks prolonging the conflict. The UK, a close ally of Israel, pushed for an emergency meeting on the crisis and warned that the Israeli plan risks deepening the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. “It will only deepen the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. This is not a path to resolution. It is a path to more bloodshed,” British Deputy Ambassador to the UN James Kariuki said.
France’s Deputy Permanent UN Representative Jay Dharmadhikari also condemned the plan in the strongest possible terms, citing dramatic humanitarian consequences for civilians already living in horrifying conditions. “The images of children dying of hunger or civilians being targeted as they tried to find food are unbearable,” Dharmadhikari said, urging Israel to comply with international humanitarian law. The UK, Denmark, France, Greece, and Slovenia issued a joint statement asking Israel to urgently reverse its decision and not implement the plan, saying it violates international law.
Despite global criticism, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains defiant about the plan to seize Gaza’s largest urban center, approved by Israel’s security cabinet on Friday. “The timeline that we set for the action is fairly quickly,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israel has “no choice but to finish the job and complete the defeat of Hamas”. Netanyahu emphasized that the military has been given the green light to dismantle what he described as two remaining Hamas strongholds: Gaza City in the north and al-Mawasi further to the south.
Hamas has responded to Netanyahu’s claim, saying the use of the term “liberation” is an attempt to distort the reality of occupation that will not cover up the crime of extermination, killing, and systematic destruction for more than 22 months. Israel’s Deputy Ambassador to the UN Jonathan Miller fired back at Hamas, saying the group is exploiting the captives and Gaza’s population to maintain its position.
The director of the coordination division at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) described the unfolding catastrophe in Gaza as unacceptable. Ramesh Rajasingham expressed concern over the prolonged conflict, reports of atrocities, and further human toll that is likely to unfold following Israel’s decision to expand military operations in Gaza. Israel has blocked most aid from entering Gaza for months, preventing UN workers from accessing and distributing lifesaving assistance. According to the Government Media Office in Gaza, only 1,210 aid trucks have entered Gaza over the past 14 days, representing just 14 percent of the territory’s minimum actual needs of 8,400 trucks.
Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children International’s director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe, noted an exponential increase in malnutrition cases, with effects that can span generations. “This is not one event. This is not the absence of two or three meals. This is an accumulation of months [of deprivation],” he said. “We can help alleviate the suffering of children in Gaza, but we cannot do that if the government of Israel continues to impose all its limitations”.