Israel-Gaza war: UN chief accuses Israeli forces of creating obstacles for aid after Security Council vote

The head of the United Nations has accused Israel of creating “massive obstacles” to aid distribution within Gaza after the UN Security Council has called for more humanitarian assistance within the battered enclave.

António Guterres took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to express his concerns about the conduct of Israeli forces which he says is escalating the humanitarian crisis.

He said: “The way Israel is conducting this offensive is creating massive obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian aid inside Gaza.

“An effective aid operation in Gaza requires security; staff who can work in safety; logistical capacity; and the resumption of commercial activity. “

It comes as the United Nations Security Council voted in favour of boosting humanitarian to the Gaza Strip and called for urgent steps “to create the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities” on Friday.

Although the US did ultimately abstain, the 15-member council was able to adopt the resolution drafted by the United Arab Emirates as 20,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict.

Key Points

• UN Security Council passes resolution on Gaza aid amid calls for ceasefire

• Israel UN ambassador criticises resolution

• Problems for UN aid efforts lie with Israel, UN chief says

• Civilians continue to bear the brunt of the Israel-Hamas war

Live blogging paused

15:41 , Lydia Patrick

We are signing off now and pausing live coverage of the Israel-Gaza war.

Stay tuned for the latest news and analysis.

Israeli strikes kill ‘76 from one family’

15:00 , Lydia Patrick

An Israeli air strike has killed 76 members of an extended family in the Gaza Strip, rescue officials said.

The attack came a day after the UN chief warned again that nowhere is safe in Gaza and that Israel’s offensive is creating “massive obstacles” to the distribution of humanitarian aid.

Friday’s strike on a building in Gaza City was among the deadliest of the Israel-Hamas war, now in its 12th week, said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesman for Gaza‘s Civil Defence department.

He provided a partial list of the names of those killed - 16 heads of households from the al-Mughrabi family - and said the dead included women and children.

Among the dead were Issam al-Mughrabi, a veteran employee of the UN Development Programme, his wife and their five children.

“The loss of Issam and his family has deeply affected us all. The UN and civilians in Gaza are not a target,” said Achim Steiner, the head of the agency. “This war must end.”

Bethlehem prays for Gaza peace: ‘I have never seen a Christmas like this’

14:00 , Bel Trew

Normally at this time of year Bethlehem is full of thosuands visiting one of Christianty’s most holy cities. But Bel Trew finds empty streets, shuttered shops and a central square without its famous Christmas tree. Clerics at the Church of the Holy Nativity – feted as the birthplace of Jesus Christ – say the situation in Gaza makes any form of celebration impossible, and they people need to be united in a message of peace

Bethlehem prays for Gaza peace: ‘I have never seen a Christmas like this’

Egyptian, Iranian presidents discuss Gaza developments, restoring ties

13:03 , Lydia Patrick

The presidents of Egypt and Iran discussed recent developments in Gaza and the prospect of restoring diplomatic ties between their two countries in what Iranian state television said on Saturday was their first phone call.

The television said Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi had called his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. The two men met in November for the first time on the sidelines of the Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit in Riyadh.

“Raisi said Iran was ready to provide all its capacities to stop the genocide by the Zionist regime and send aid to the Palestinians,” Iranian state TV reported, adding that it was the first time the two presidents had spoken by phone.

Relations between Egypt and Iran have generally been fraught in recent decades although the two countries have maintained some diplomatic contacts. Their call follows other moves by countries in the region to east tension in recent months.

Egypt’s Sunni Muslim Arab ally Saudi Arabia and Shi’ite Muslim Iran restored diplomatic relations earlier this year while Cairo has mended a rift with Qatar and re-established ties with Turkey.

Fighting rages in northern Gaza after U.N. stops short of ceasefire call

12:30 , Lydia Patrick

Israeli forces fought Hamas militants on Saturday in northern Gaza, where it is seeking full control so it can focus on the south, a day after the U.N. Security Council called for more aid for the Palestinian enclave but stopped short of demanding a ceasefire.

Thick smoke hung over the northern town of Jabalia - which is also home to Gaza‘s largest refugee camp - and residents reported persistent aerial bombardment and shelling from Israeli tanks, which they said had moved further into the town.

Hamas’ armed wing Al Qassam Brigades said it was engaged in combat with Israeli forces in the area. It said it had destroyed five Israeli tanks, killing and injuring their crews, after reusing two undetonated missiles launched earlier by Israel. Reuters could not independently verify the report.

More than 20,000 killed in Gaza as entire population faces food and water crisis

11:58 , Lydia Patrick

than 20,000 people, a figure that amounts to nearly 1 per cent of the population before Israel’s war against Hamas.

Israel launched its devastating retaliatory campaign following Hamas attacks in Israel on 7 October that left 1,200 people dead and took roughly 240 hostages. Israel’s response has killed roughly one in every 100 people in Gaza. More than two-thirds are women and children.

That scale of death is compounded by an acute hunger crisis, warnings from international aid groups about depleting supplies of clean water and fear of disease, and the mass displacement of roughly 1.9 million people, or 85 per cent of Gaza’s population.

More than half a million people, or one-quarter of Gaza’s population, are starving, according to the United Nations. Nine out of 10 Palestinians are eating less than one meal a day, according to the World Food Programme.

Only nine of its 36 health facilities, all in the south of Gaza, are still partially functioning, according to the World Health Organisation.

Read the full report by Alex Woodward here:

More than 20,000 killed in Gaza as entire population faces food and water crisis

The children of Gaza

11:00 , Lydia Patrick

Special Report: One little girl desperately wanted to be a YouTube star. Her brother adored football and his favourite player, Cristiano Ronaldo. Their cousin was a teenage electronics wiz. Since the start of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, more than 7,000 children have been killed in airstrikes, artillery and mortar fire. Often entire families disappeared in an instant. Here are the stories of nine Palestinian children who’ve been killed in the war, as told to Richard Hall and Ariana Baio

More than 7,000 children have been killed in Gaza – here are some of their stories

Israeli strikes kill ‘76 from one family'

10:19 , Lydia Patrick

An Israeli air strike has killed 76 members of an extended family in the Gaza Strip, rescue officials said.

The attack came a day after the UN chief warned again that nowhere is safe in Gaza and that Israel’s offensive is creating “massive obstacles” to the distribution of humanitarian aid.

Friday’s strike on a building in Gaza City was among the deadliest of the Israel-Hamas war, now in its 12th week, said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesman for Gaza‘s Civil Defence department.

He provided a partial list of the names of those killed - 16 heads of households from the al-Mughrabi family - and said the dead included women and children.

Among the dead were Issam al-Mughrabi, a veteran employee of the UN Development Programme, his wife and their five children.

“The loss of Issam and his family has deeply affected us all. The UN and civilians in Gaza are not a target,” said Achim Steiner, the head of the agency. “This war must end.”

Over 100 UN workers killed in Gaza

10:00 , Lydia Patrick

António Guterres shared his condolences on X, saying the high death toll is something the UN have never seen before.

He shared on X: “136 of our colleagues in Gaza have been killed in 75 days – something we have never seen in @UN history. Most of our staff have been forced from their homes. I pay tribute to them & the thousands of aid workers risking their lives as they support civilians in Gaza. “

UN chief says Israel is creating obstacles for aid into Gaza

09:35 , Lydia Patrick

As the United Nation’s Security Council voted in favour of boosting humanitarian aid to the Gaza strip, the UN chief has spoken out Israeli forces creating obstacles to the provision of humanitarian aid.

António Guterres posted on X:

War reaches grim milestone

09:24 , Lydia Patrick

Israeli forces have killed more than 20,000 Palestinians, health officials in Gaza said Friday, as Israel expanded its offensive and ordered tens of thousands more people to leave their homes.

The deaths in Gaza amount to nearly 1% of the territory’s prewar population — the latest indication of the 11-week-old conflict’s staggering human toll.

Israel‘s aerial and ground offensive has been one of the most devastating military campaigns in recent history, displacing nearly 85% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and leveling wide swaths of the tiny coastal enclave.

More than half a million people in Gaza — a quarter of the population — are starving, according to a report Thursday from the United Nations and other agencies.

Israel declared war after Hamas militants stormed across the border on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people and taking some 240 hostages. Israel has vowed to keep up the fight until Hamas is destroyed and removed from power in Gaza and all the hostages are freed

.After many delays, the U.N. Security Council adopted a watered-down resolution Friday calling for immediately speeding up aid deliveries to desperate civilians in Gaza.

The United States won the removal of a tougher call for an “urgent suspension of hostilities” between Israel and Hamas. It abstained in the vote, as did Russia, which wanted the stronger language.

The resolution was the first on the war to make it through the council after the U.S. vetoed two earlier ones that called for humanitarian pauses and a full cease-fire.

Signing off

Friday 22 December 2023 23:29 , Josh Marcus

After an eventful day at the UN, we’re signing off for now.

Thanks for reading The Independent’s live coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.

Stay tuned for all the latest news and analysis.

American-Israeli citizen taken hostage by Hamas dies in Gaza

Friday 22 December 2023 22:47 , Josh Marcus

An American citizen who was taken hostage by Hamas during the 7 October attacks on Israel has died in captivity in Gaza, according to a group representing hostages’ families.

Gadi Haggai, a 73-year-old US and Israeli dual national, was out for a walk with his wife Judith Weinstein Haggai, 70, in the Kibbutz Nir Oz where they lived that morning when Hamas militants stormed across the border into Israel, the Missing Persons Families Forum said.

The couple was reportedly shot at, with Gadi Haggai left critically injured.

Neither of them has been seen or heard from since.

Rachel Sharp reports.

American-Israeli citizen taken hostage by Hamas dies in Gaza

Israel wanted US help in effort to get Egypt to accept refugees: report

Friday 22 December 2023 22:27 , Josh Marcus

In the immediate aftermath of the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel, Israeli prime minister asked if the US could pressure its ally Egypt to accept scores of Palestinian refugees, The Washington Post reports.

However, the Biden administration reportedly responded that Egypt would never go along with the idea, as it didn’t want to facilitate mass displacement.

A measure of relief for Gaza’s children

Friday 22 December 2023 22:07 , Josh Marcus

Friday’s resolution emphasised the need for additional humanitarian aid to reach the civilians of Gaza.

Earlier this month, Richard Hall and Ariana Baio reported on some of the innocents who’ve already been killed.

More than 7,000 children have been killed in Gaza – here are some of their stories

As UN wrestled with resolution, fighting continued

Friday 22 December 2023 21:57 , Josh Marcus

On the front lines, the negotiations at the UN today must seem a long way away.

On Friday, a Hezbollah rocket barrage killed an Israeli soldier and wounded another, according to The Times of Israel.

What has Hamas said about the UN vote?

Friday 22 December 2023 21:27 , Josh Marcus

Hamas criticised the UN Security Council resolution calling for expedited aid to Gaza as an “insuficient step.”

“During the past five days, the US administration has worked hard to empty this resolution of its essence, and to issue it in this weak formula... it defies the will of the international community and the United Nations General Assembly in stopping Israel’s aggression against our defenseless Palestinian people,” the group said in a statement.

The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, said the resolution was a step in the right direction but maintained calls for a ceasefire.

UNICEF reiterates call for ceasefire after UN resolution

Friday 22 December 2023 21:07 , Josh Marcus

UNICEF, the United Nations body that provides humanitarian aid to children, has continued to call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, as the conflict continues to kill numerous children.

Following Friday’s vote, they released a video appeal via X.

Civilians continue to bear the brunt of the Israel-Hamas war

Friday 22 December 2023 20:52 , Josh Marcus

The Israel-Hamas war began when the militant group launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing numerous civilians.

In response, Israel has invaded Gaza, killing thousands of innocents, a vast majority of them women and children.

Alex Woodward reports on the horrifying civilian death toll.

More than 20,000 killed in Gaza as entire population faces food and water crisis

Why the UN’s Gaza resolution is unlikely to impact wider war

Friday 22 December 2023 20:35 , Josh Marcus

After numerous postponed votes, the United Nations Security Council on Friday approved a resolution calling for urgent humanitarian aid to Gaza, abandoning a proposal that would have urged for a broader ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, which has killed over 20,000 people and devastated large parts of the Gaza Strip.

That’s despite worldwide protests and a UN General Assembly majority vote last week calling for such a pause in fighting.

So what does the resolution actually do? Here’s what you need to know.

Why the UN’s Gaza resolution is unlikely to impact wider war

Palestinian Authority says UN resolution is ‘step in right direction'

Friday 22 December 2023 20:14 , Josh Marcus

The Palestinian Authority voiced measured approval on Friday for the recent UN Security Council resolution regarding the Israel-Hamas war.

The governing body, which does not control the Gaza Strip, called the resolution a “a step in the right direction” on Friday.

“It must be implemented and must be accompanied by massive pressure for an immediate ceasefire. I repeat, immediate ceasefire,” PA ambassador Riyad Mansour said at UN headquarters on Friday.

Tracking US votes at the UN so far

Friday 22 December 2023 19:51 , Josh Marcus

As Israel’s key ally and a permanent member of the UN Security, the US has a large role in determining the future course of the Israel-Hamas war, especially at the United Nations.

So far, America has sided with Israel and witheld support from resolutions calling for a ceasefire and affirming the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

On 8 December, the US vetoed a resolution that demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and the release of all hostages.

The following week, the US was one of just 10 votes against a broader UN general assembly resolution calling for a ceasefire that passed with 153 nations in support.

Then, on Tuesday, the US was among four nations to oppose a another general assembly resolution affirming the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, despite President Biden publically expressing his support for the idea earlier this year.

Finaly, that brings us to today, when the US abstained from a Security Council resolution that called for increase aid to Gaza.

UN Security Council approves Gaza aid but rejects ceasefire

Cornel West slams Biden administration over UN resolution

Friday 22 December 2023 19:29 , Josh Marcus

Academic and outsider US presidential candidate Cornel West was sharply critical on Friday of the UN Security Council resolution on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

In a statement on X, he accused the Biden administration of having “watered down” original calls for a ceasefire, setting the stage for “further war crimes and genocidal acts by the State of Israel.

“I reject this resolution and its intentional use of semantics to beguile the global community,” he added. “This is not diplomacy, it’s complicity and a green light for Israel to continue their campaign of slaughter and moral bankruptcy.”

Cameron calls UN resolution ‘good news'

Friday 22 December 2023 19:16 , David Taintor

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron celebrated the passage of the UN resolution, saying in a statement: “It is good news that the UN has come together to back a resolution to get more humanitarian aid into Gaza.”

“This resolution repeats so many of the points we have been making: the importance of complying with international humanitarian law. The need to reduce civilian casualties and it also backs a two-state solution that would be the best long-term guarantee of security and stability for both Israel and the Palestinian people,” he added.

Problems for UN aid efforts lie with Israel, UN chief says

Friday 22 December 2023 18:48 , Athena Stavrou

Following the vote that confirmed the adoption of a UN resolution urging for more humanitarian aid in Gaza, the UN chief the “real problem” for UN aid efforts has been Israel’s offensive.

“A humanitarian ceasefire is the only way to begin to meet the desperate needs of people in Gaza and end their ongoing nightmare,” Antonio Guterres said.

He added that Israel’s offensive has caused “massive obstacles” in aid efforts.

Starmer welcomes UN vote and calls for ‘sustained’ ceasefire

Friday 22 December 2023 18:30 , Athena Stavrou

Following the adoption of a UN resolution to boost humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has called for work towards a sustained ceasefire.

“I welcome today’s vote at the United Nations Security Council,” he said.

“The horrors of recent months have been intolerable. This resolution describes how we must work for a sustained ceasefire.”

He added: “Hamas must release all the remaining hostages, end all attacks on Israel and have no role in the future governance of Gaza.

“Israel must agree to end its bombing campaign, allow a humanitarian surge into Gaza, and end settler violence and displacement in the West Bank.”

Israel UN ambassador criticises resolution

Friday 22 December 2023 18:17 , Athena Stavrou

Israel‘s Ambassador to the United Nations criticised the Security Council for its response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack following a Friday vote to boost humanitarian aid to Gaza.

“The UN’s focus only on aid mechanisms to Gaza is unnecessary and disconnected from reality - Israel is already allowing aid deliveries at the required scale,” said Gilad Erdan. “The UN should have focused on the humanitarian crisis of the hostages.”

Erdan also thanked the United States for its strong support of Israel during the negotiations on the resolution, which he said maintained Israel‘s security authority to inspect aid entering Gaza.

Watch: UN Security Council approves aid for Gaza

Friday 22 December 2023 18:04 , Athena Stavrou

The United Nations Security Council has approved further access to humanitarian aid for Gaza by adopting a revised resolution on Friday.

Watch here:

David Cameron welcomes UN resolution

Friday 22 December 2023 17:53 , Athena Stavrou

David Cameron has welcomed the adoption of the UN resolution to bring more humanitarian aid into the beseiged Gaza strip.

“It is good news that the UN has come together to back a resolution to get more humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the UK Foreign Secretary said:.

“The UK is doing everything it can to get more aid in, as I saw when I visited Al Arish in Egypt, near the border with Gaza, this week.

“People across Gaza urgently need food, medicine and shelter. We have consistently argued for more aid and called on Israel to open more border crossings.”

He added that the resolution demands the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and crucially calls for steps towards a sustainable ceasefire.

“As well as the need for expanded humanitarian access, the UN resolution today demands the immediate and unconditional release of hostages. This is vital.

Was the resolution watered down?

Friday 22 December 2023 17:37 , Athena Stavrou

After many delays, the UN Security Council adopted a watered-down resolution calling for immediately speeding up aid deliveries to desperate civilians in Gaza on Friday.

However, the resolution was without the original call for an “urgent suspension of hostilities” between Israel and Hamas.

The original draft was initially scheduled for Monday but was delayed every day this week to prevent the US from abstaining from the vote.

The revised text was negotiated during a week and a half of high-level diplomacy by the United States, the United Arab Emirates on behalf of Arab nations and others.

Rather than watered down, US ambassador Lina Thomas-Greenfield described the resolution as “strong” and said it “is fully supported by the Arab group that provides them what they feel is needed to get humanitarian assistance on the ground.”But it was stripped of its key provision with teeth — a call for “the urgent suspension of hostilities to allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access, and for urgent steps towards a sustainable cessation of hostilities.”Instead, it calls “for urgent steps to immediately allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access, and also for creating the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities.”

Why was the resolution drafted?

Friday 22 December 2023 17:27 , Athena Stavrou

The “purpose” of the draft resolution introduced by the United Arab Emirates said “is very simple,” ambassador Lana Nusseibeh told the council in New York on Friday.

It “responds with action” to the dire conditions in Gaza while protecting those who are trying to deliver aid,” she said.

The resolution demands “urgent steps to immediately allow safe, unhindered, and expanded humanitarian access and to create the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities,” amid dire warnings from international aid groups and pressure from global officials for an end to the siege.

Within 10 weeks, Israel’s air-and-ground assault in Gaza has now killed more than 20,000 people, a figure that amounts to nearly 1 per cent of the population before Israel’s war against Hamas.

Israel launched its devastating retaliatory campaign following Hamas attacks in Israel on 7 October that left 1,200 people dead and took roughly 240 hostages.

Israel’s response has killed roughly one in every 100 people in Gaza. More than two-thirds are women and children.

UN Security Council passes resolution on Gaza aid amid calls for ceasefire

Friday 22 December 2023 17:21 , Athena Stavrou

The United Nations Security Council has voted in favour of boosting humanitarian said to the Gaza Strip and called for urgent steps “to create the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities” on Friday.

The vote was initially scheduled for Monday but was finally agreed after a week of vote delays and intense negotiations to avoid a veto by the United States.

It comes amid global outrage over a rising Gaza death toll in 11 weeks of war between Israel and Hamas and a worsening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.

The US abstained to allow the 15-member council to adopt a resolution drafted by the United Arab Emirates.