Fears of disease loom in Gaza

By Nathan Morley

The UN relief agency for Palestinians says the threat of disease outbreaks in Gaza is growing as winter ends and temperatures rise.

UNWRA says that cleaner living conditions are urgently needed in the enclave.

As it stands, the Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has risen to 33,970, according to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry.

Reports suggest some victims remain buried under the rubble amid heavy bombardment and a lack of civil defense and emergency crews.

In a separate development, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an end to ‘the dangerous cycle of retaliation in the Middle East’.

Concerning the situation between Iran and Israel, he condemned any act of retaliation and appealed to the international community to work together to prevent any further development that could lead to devastating consequences for the entire region and beyond.

Earlier, also Turkey expressed its unease that tensions between Iran and Israel could turn into a wider conflict, and called on both countries to desist from any steps that could escalate the conflict.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry stressed that the main concern of the international community should be to end the conflict in Gaza and to guarantee lasting peace in the region by establishing a Palestinian state.