Public order in Gaza likely to break down: UN chief

AFP :
The UN secretary-general, warning he expects public order in Gaza to break down completely and soon, struck a rare and powerful alarm bell in a letter Wednesday to the Security Council.
Antonio Guterres said he was invoking Article 99 of the UN’s charter, which states that “the Secretary-General may bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.”
While repeating his call for a “humanitarian cease fire,” Guterres wrote that the humanitarian conditions amid the Israel-Hamas war are “fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole.”
“Amid constant bombardment by the Israel Defense Forces, and without shelter or the essentials to survive, I expect public order to completely break down soon due to the desperate conditions, rendering even limited humanitarian assistance impossible,” he said.
“An even worse situation could unfold, including epidemic diseases and increased pressure for mass displacement into neighboring countries.”
The secretary-general’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, called the move “very dramatic,” noting that Article 99 hadn’t been invoked in decades.
“He is invoking one of the few powers that the charter gives him,” Dujarric said.
Guterres, who took office in 2017, also urged the members of the Security Council to “press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe.” “The health care system in Gaza is collapsing,” he said, adding that “there is no effective protection of civilians.” Israel’s foreign minister later lashed out at the UN chief, saying Guterres’s tenure was “a danger to world peace” after his invoking of the rare procedure.