STORY: UN chief asks Security Council to act to avert humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza
SHOOTING TIME: Dec. 7, 2023
DATELINE: Dec. 7, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:11
LOCATION: UN headquarters
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric at podium
2. SOUNDBITE (English): STEPHANE DUJARRIC, Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General
3. various of the press

STORYLINE:

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday asked the Security Council to act to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, said his spokesman.

In a rare move, Guterres wrote to the president of the Security Council to demand action, invoking Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since he became UN secretary-general in 2017.

Article 99 states, "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."

SOUNDBITE (English): STEPHANE DUJARRIC, Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General
"Given the scale of the loss of human life in Gaza and in Israel, in such a short amount of time, the secretary-general has today delivered a letter to the president of the Security Council, invoking Article 99 of the Charter of the United Nations. This is the first time that Antonio Guterres has done this since he became secretary-general in 2017. Article 99 states - and I quote - 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.' In the letter, which has been shared with you, the secretary-general urges the members of the Security Council to press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe, and he appeals for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared."

"The international community has a responsibility to use all its influence to prevent further escalation and end this crisis. I urge the members of the Security Council to press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe. I reiterate my appeal for a humanitarian cease-fire to be declared," reads the letter. 
"This is urgent. The civilian population must be spared from greater harm. With a humanitarian ceasefire, the means of survival can be restored, and humanitarian assistance can be delivered in a safe and timely manner across the Gaza Strip," it says.

At least 130 workers of the UN Agency for Palestine Refugees have been killed, many with their families, since Oct. 7, says Guterres.

"We are facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system. The situation is fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole and for peace and security in the region. Such an outcome must be avoided at all cost," he says.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from UN headquarters.
(XHTV)