Quotes
Extremist settlers had harassed him and his group, ... it is not journalists who disturb the peace."
Seibert said
This is really because the secretary-general doesn't have the power of guaranteeing the safety of UN staff,
UN spokesperson Alessandra Vellucci told a press briefing in Geneva_(cropped).jpg)
After being handcuffed all night and beaten in a military base, Hamdan Ballal is now free and is about to go home to his family,
Israeli co-director Yuval Abraham said on TuesdayI think that’s one of the reasons we need to have a pretty clear and transparent investigation. The point is that the Israelis knew exactly where this UN facility was, and it was hit by a shell from one of their tanks.”
Asked if the U.N. believed the compound had been deliberated targeted, Dujarric said
What we’re doing is reducing the number of international staff members by about one third this week, maybe a bit more likely to come. It’s a temporary measure. We hope to have people return to Gaza as soon as practicable,
he saidOver 250 have been killed in the past 15 months or so, but now, the secretary-general is saying that the situation is so dangerous that of the 100 international staff in Gaza employed by the UN, he’s going to reduce that staffing by about one-third, or about 30 of those international staff, who are going to leave Gaza for their own safety,
Elizondo said
The UN has over 13,000 employees in Gaza, the vast majority of them are Palestinians who work as doctors, nurses, drivers and perform other very important humanitarian jobs in Gaza,
Elizondo saidA lot things are constrained right now because of the security situation,
she told AP before Dujarric’s announcement
The Secretary-General has taken the difficult decision to reduce the United Nations' footprint in Gaza, even as humanitarian needs soar and our concern over the protection of civilians intensifies,
said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for Guterres, at a daily press briefing
Our 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,
OCHA saidThe United Nations is not leaving Gaza,
Dujarric saidAll states must use their leverage to stop the conflict and ensure respect for international law, by applying diplomatic and economic pressure and combating impunity,
the spokesman saidThe public must understand that Hamas’ top priority is not safeguarding Palestinian civilians but ensuring the Islamist group’s survival,
Truzman said
Hamas has become highly skilled at persuading the public that it does not operate from civilian infrastructure – a demonstrably false assertion,
Truzman saidThe location of this UN compound was well known to the parties to the conflict,
Dujarric said
Based on the information currently available, the strikes hitting a UN compound in Deir Al Balah on 19 March were caused by an Israeli tank,
said the secretary-general's spokesman Stephane Dujarric