Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, and Dr. Riyad Mansour, Palestinian Ambassador to the UN, attend a Security Council meeting on the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Nov 10, 2023, at UN Headquarters in New York City. (PHOTO / AFP)

UNITED NATIONS/JERUSALEM/GAZA – The UN Security Council convened again on Friday to address the Israel-Hamas conflict, focusing on the critically overwhelmed healthcare infrastructure in Gaza, with speakers urging an immediate ceasefire, enhanced aid and lasting solutions.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), said the health system in Gaza is "on its knees."

The situation on the ground is grim, said the WHO chief, from hospitals conducting operations without anesthesia to the fact that a child is killed every ten minutes.

"Nowhere and no one is safe," he said, adding that medical staff are grappling to try to manage the health needs of 2.3 million people.

READ MORE: UN High Commissioner urges immediate action on Gaza crisis

Tedros said the best way to show support is by providing what health workers need to save lives. About 63 metric tons of such aid has been sent, but unfettered access is required to reach the civilians who are not responsible for the crisis.

Listen to the cries of children soaked in blood.

Marwan Jilani, Director General, Palestine Red Crescent Society

The WHO continues to call for a ceasefire. In addition, he called for both sides to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law, he said.

Marwan Jilani, director general of the Palestine Red Crescent Society, provided an overview of recent events, noting people are getting shot at "as we speak," with 20 injured due to direct fire at the Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City. Thousands are under imminent threat of being killed, he warned on video.

He called on the council to demand an effective and immediate ceasefire, together with emergency aid for northern Gaza. “Listen to the cries of children soaked in blood," he said, questioning why the world is so indifferent to their lives.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) called for the meeting, citing "the spiraling health crisis amidst continued attacks on hospitals."

UAE permanent representative to the United Nations, Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, shared stories about some of the people affected by the conflict, such as a medical student called Alaa, whose home was leveled in an Israeli airstrike. The young woman was pulled alive from the rubble, along with the lifeless bodies of her mother, brother and nephew.

"I feel the need to remind the council that, like Alaa, every single one of the 2,650 currently reported as trapped under the rubble are human beings and that more than half of them are children," she said.

The ambassador warned that the world was "witnessing the making of a lost generation of children and youth physically and mentally scarred by these experiences."

Riyad Mansour, permanent observer of the Observer State of Palestine, appealed to the council to "stop the massacre; stop it now." 

ALSO READ: Hostage families appeal for return of loved ones in Gaza ceasefire

"The General Assembly resolution must be implemented; the Security Council must echo its calls," he said.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Oct 27, calling for an immediate, sustained humanitarian truce leading to the cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas.

Palestinian people are seen on their way from Gaza City toward south, in central Gaza Strip, on Nov. 10, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

Mansour said the shocking situation must be addressed as the death toll mounts, recalling that the Council's first meeting on the matter last month occurred when hundreds of Palestinians had been killed. Today, that number has reached 11,000, including 4,500 children.

"I used to come here to say protect my people from war crimes and crimes against humanity. Now I come to call for protection from genocide," he said.

Safe zones today simply do not exist in the Gaza Strip.

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN

Gilad Erdan, permanent representative of Israel to the United Nations, said senior UN officials were not reflecting the truth of the situation on the ground. "Sadly, they are relaying falsehoods that are completely detached from reality," he said.

Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, said the "shocking" briefings from humanitarians and the current situation describe a "catastrophe," with massive destruction of civilian targets.

"In all wars, there are laws," he said, referring to a recent report of strikes against hospitals and mosques in southern Gaza. "Safe zones today simply do not exist in the Gaza Strip."

A prompt ceasefire, not short-term pauses, is the only way to end new casualties and allow aid deliveries. He said the risk of the conflict spilling into the region is high. Enhanced foreign military presence in the zone, specifically the United States, is part of the overall escalation of tensions.

As such, he underlined the need to relaunch the peace process in the Middle East.

"In Gaza, nowhere and no one is safe," said Tedros, speaking again as the meeting came to a close.

"Imagine that you're trapped in that situation," he asked ambassadors.

"That's why we're asking for a ceasefire and unfettered humanitarian access," he said. "And at the same time, of course, we're also asking for the Security Council to do everything for the release of hostages."

On the two-state solution, he said he had long believed the Gaza situation was simply unsustainable.

READ MORE: Israel to intensify fighting in Gaza despite humanitarian pause

The WHO chief said apart from being beneficial for a Palestinian State, it is a good solution for Israel.

He added that he had been glad to hear many in the council chamber stressing the importance of a two-state solution as a "long-term solution."

Israeli army surrounds Al-Shifa Hospital 

The Israeli army has besieged the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza amid heavy clashes with the Palestinian militants in the territory, Palestinian security sources said Saturday.

"Tanks and military vehicles of the Israeli army have been encircling the vicinity of the Shifa hospital from all main axes for hours, coinciding with heavy artillery shelling in the area," Palestinian security sources told Xinhua.

They said that ambulances were unable to leave the Al-Shifa Complex and transfer the wounded amid fears that they might become a moving target.

Local eyewitnesses said that they heard massive explosions during the night from violent armed clashes between Israeli army forces and militants of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, in several areas of Gaza City, especially in the vicinity of the Shifa Hospital.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct 28, 2023. (POOL PHOTO VIA AP)

Israeli army to control Gaza 

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will take control of the Gaza Strip after the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday.

We will not give it (Gaza) to international forces.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister, Israel

“After the elimination of Hamas, there will be total Israeli security control of the Gaza Strip, including full demilitarization, to ensure that there is no longer a threat from Gaza to Israel's citizens," Netanyahu told mayors of Israeli towns near Gaza border during a meeting in Tel Aviv. 

"We will not give it (Gaza) to international forces," he said.

The meeting was held after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reaffirmed early in the day that Palestinians "will not accept the reoccupation of Gaza or the annexation of any parts of it under any pretext" when addressing a ceremony in memory of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

Abbas also called for the delivery of humanitarian aids, including medical supplies, food, water, electricity, and fuel, into the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the IDF continues its military operation in Gaza on Friday, mobilizing aerial, naval, and ground forces. 

Over the past day, Israeli troops raided and captured several Hamas outposts in Gaza City, killing about 150 militants, said the IDF.

ALSO READ: Rafah crossing between Gaza, Egypt closed over security

It has struck over 15,000 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip and seized over 6,000 weapons since the beginning of the conflict on Oct 7, according to an IDF statement released on Friday.

Israeli army also struck targets in Syria early Friday morning, in response to a drone attack on the Red Sea city of Eilat on Thursday. Israel said the drone was launched from Syria. Lebanese military group Hezbollah confirmed seven of its members were killed in the IDF airstrikes.

Fight with Hezbollah 

O the Israel-Lebanon border, five Israeli soldiers were injured, including four seriously, by anti-tank missile and drone attacks launched by Hezbollah. The IDF responded by carrying out airstrikes on Lebanon.

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said Friday that more than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed since the outbreak of Israel-Hamas conflict. 

Meanwhile, at least 1,400 people in Israel were killed, and a total of 239 people were taken hostage during the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct 7.

According to the Israeli police, the bodies of at least 870 civilians and 356 security forces have been identified.