UN resolution urges more Gaza aid as war takes toll on civilians

The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, called the council's resolution "a step in the right direction", but said it "must be accompanied by massive pressure for an immediate ceasefire".

But Hamas n a statement described it as "an insufficient measure that does not respond to the catastrophic situation created by the Zionist (Israeli) war machine".

UN chief Antonio Guterres said after the vote that "the way Israel is conducting this offensive is creating massive obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian aid inside Gaza".

The fighting has displaced 1.9 million Gazans according to UN figures, out of a population of 2.4 million, and put out of action most of the 36 hospitals in the territory. Nine remain partly functioning, the World Health Organization says.

The UN agency's head, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on social media that "hunger is present, and famine is looming in Gaza."

"Four out of five households in northern Gaza, and half of the displaced households in the south, are going entire days and nights without eating. This is heartbreaking."

With swathes of Gaza reduced to rubble, the displaced have been forced into crowded shelters or tents, and are struggling to find food, fuel, water and medical supplies.

According to the UN, the number of aid trucks entering Gaza is well below the daily pre-war average.

Last week Israel approved aid delivery via Kerem Shalom crossing, and the army says on average 80 trucks enter Gaza through it daily.

Journalists in a media tour of the facility on Friday, organised by the Israeli military, could see a miles-long queue of aid trucks held up for hours as they awaited inspection by soldiers.

Egyptian driver Said Abdel Hamid seemed unfazed by the wait, saying he was "proud to bring help to my Palestinian brothers" as he removed the tarpaulin sheet covering his flour cargo for examination.

In north Gaza, parts of Gaza City including Shujaiya have seen street-by-street combat -- even building-by-building -- between Israeli soldiers and Hamas fighters.

According to the military, the deaths of two more soldiers in Gaza brought to 139 the number killed since it began its ground assault on October 27.

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