UNICEF: Gaza cease-fire must be 'substantive' to end 'darkest chapters' of humanity

A cease-fire in the Gaza Strip must be "substantive, not symbolic" to end the "darkest chapters" of humanity, a UNICEF official said on Tuesday.

"Gaza has shattered humanity's records for its darkest chapters. Humanity must now urgently write a different chapter," UNICEF spokesman James Elder said at a UN press briefing in Geneva.

"The hostages must go home, the people of Gaza must be allowed to live," he added.

Regarding the challenges that UNICEF as well as other partners face while trying to reach the north to deliver aid, he said that if the existing Erez crossing point, which is "10 minutes from where those people are putting their hands to their mouth pleading for food," could be used in the north, the humanitarian crisis could be "turned around in a matter of days" but efforts to provide aid are being "hampered."

On Monday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Palestinian territory since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

More than 32,300 Palestinians have since been killed and over 74,694 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war, now in its 172nd day, has pushed 85% of Gaza's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Gaza, particularly residents in the north, is on the verge of starvation as a UN-backed report warned of an imminent famine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.