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United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 17, 2024.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday reiterated his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip.

"The world is standing by as civilians, mostly women and children, are killed, maimed, bombarded, forced from their homes and denied access to humanitarian aid," Guterres said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The UN chief said "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza" was the sole means of preventing "a spillover that could send the entire region up in flames."

The UN chief emphasized the importance of addressing the humanitarian situation in Gaza, establishment of ceasefire, and releasing hostages.

Israel has killed more than 24,000 people in Gaza since early October 2023. The regime launched the hostilities in the wake of the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm by the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.

According to the UN, 85% of the population of Gaza is already internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine.