Fletcher warned that such commitments should not be used as \u201ca bargaining chip.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In a statement on Wednesday, Fletcher said the agreement came at a moment of \u201cgreat but precarious hope,\u201d following the peace initiative endorsed by world leaders in Sharm el-Sheikh earlier this week. He said both sides must now fully implement the deal, reflecting widespread public desire across the region for peace to take hold.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The UN Humanitarian Chief noted that operations in Gaza had finally begun to expand \u201cafter months of frustration and blockages,\u201d with the delivery of essential supplies such as food, fuel, medicine, and shelter materials. However, he cautioned that renewed violence and restrictions now risked reversing that progress.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are now tested to see whether we can ensure that these do not prevent the progress on which President Donald Trump, the UN Secretary-General, and so many leaders have insisted,\u201d Fletcher said. He called on Hamas to urgently return all bodies of deceased hostages and voiced concern over mounting evidence of violence against civilians in Gaza.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He also pressed Israel to permit a \u201cmassive surge of humanitarian aid, thousands of trucks a week, on which so many lives depend.\u201d Opening additional border crossings and removing logistical barriers, he said, were essential steps to meeting urgent needs. \u201cFacilitation of aid is a legal obligation,\u201d Fletcher stressed. \u201cWe will not accept any interference with our aid distribution.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
His appeal followed alarming reports from the UN human rights office (OHCHR) of new abuses in Gaza, including summary executions and unlawful killings. OHCHR cited video footage showing the public execution of eight blindfolded and handcuffed men allegedly by a Hamas-linked unit, describing the act as a war crime.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The office also reported that Israeli forces had opened fire on Palestinians attempting to return to their homes in Gaza City, killing three. \u201cThe situation in Gaza remains precarious and uncertain,\u201d said Ajith Sunghay, OHCHR\u2019s Head in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, urging both sides to uphold the ceasefire and work towards recovery and self-determination for Palestinians.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":13313,"template":"default||default","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-13312","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The United Nations (UN) Relief Chief, Tom Fletcher, has urged Israel and Hamas to honour their agreement to return the bodies of deceased hostages and to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza at scale.||The United Nations (UN) Relief Chief, Tom Fletcher, has urged Israel and Hamas to honour their agreement to return the bodies of deceased hostages and to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza at scale.","published_date":null,"news_description":"The United Nations (UN) Relief Chief, Tom Fletcher, has urged Israel and Hamas to honour their agreement to return the bodies of deceased hostages and to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza at scale.||The United Nations (UN) Relief Chief, Tom Fletcher, has urged Israel and Hamas to honour their agreement to return the bodies of deceased hostages and to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza at scale.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/13312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/13312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18492,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/13312\/revisions\/18492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=13312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}