Gaza crisis 'beyond atrocious' as IDF operations intensify, UN chief says
At least 153 people were killed -- including seven who were recovered from rubble --and 459 were injured in the past 24 hours as IDF operations intensify across the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.
Many victims remain trapped under debris or lying in the streets, as ambulances and civil defense crews are unable to reach them due to ongoing strikes, the Gaza Ministry of Health said.
At least 3,131 Palestinians have been killed and over 8,600 have been injured since the end of the two-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on March 18, the Gaza Ministry of Health previously said.
Conditions on the ground are "getting worse not day by day, but hour by hour" as bombardments intensify and access to emergency care becomes nearly impossible, according to ABC News' Diaa Ostaz, reporting from Khan Younis.
Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, speaking at the Arab League summit in Baghdad, said he was "alarmed by reported plans by Israel to expand ground operations" and renewed his appeal for an immediate and permanent ceasefire.
"We need a permanent ceasefire, now," Guterres told regional leaders.
Guterres issued one of his strongest statements yet on the crisis in Gaza, calling the situation for Palestinians "beyond description, beyond atrocious & beyond inhumane."
In a post on X, Guterres condemned the ongoing Israeli siege and humanitarian blockade: "A policy of siege & starvation makes a mockery of international law. The blockade against humanitarian aid must end immediately," he said. "This is a moment for moral clarity & action."
The Israel Defense Forces say the "extensive attacks" and "mobilized forces" used in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours are part of the "opening moves for Operation 'Gideon's Chariots' and the expansion of the campaign in Gaza," the IDF said in a post on X on Friday evening local time.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet approved the plans for operation Gideon's Chariots on May 5. The operation will include a "broad attack that includes the displacement of most of the population of the Gaza Strip," an IDF spokesperson said on May 5 when the operation was announced.
Israeli forces plan to remain in Gaza after the operation is complete, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on May 7.
