STORY: UN chief calls for urgent steps to de-escalate situation in Gaza, surrounding areas
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 31, 2024
DATELINE: Feb. 1, 2024
LENGTH: 0:02:33
LOCATION: UN Headquarters
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. wide shot of conference room
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
3. med shot of Guterres speaking
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
5. various of delegates
6. SOUNDBITE 3 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
7. wide shot of conference room

STORYLINE:

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday urgently appealed for measures to reduce tensions in Gaza and its neighboring regions.

The top UN official made the remarks at a meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. 
SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
"I call for urgent steps to de-escalate the situation and spare the region from more violence before it is too late. As we seek to address mounting needs in Gaza, we also remain focused on the deteriorating situation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. I am extremely alarmed by the high levels of settler violence in the occupied West Bank. Palestinian attacks against Israelis also continue. All of this violence must stop, and the perpetrators held accountable."

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
"The ongoing conflict and relentless bombardment by Israeli forces across Gaza have resulted in killings of civilians and destruction at a pace and scale unlike anything we have witnessed in recent years. I'm horrified by incessant military strikes that have killed and maimed civilians and protected personnel, and that have damaged or destroyed civilian infrastructures. Over 26,750 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Gaza alone - more than two-thirds women and children. Over 70 percent of civilian infrastructures -- including homes, hospitals, schools, water, and sanitation facilities in Gaza -- have been destroyed or severely damaged. 1.7 million people have been displaced, and not knowing if they will have homes to return to."

SOUNDBITE 3 (English): ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN Secretary-General
"Only the two-state solution - based on the 1967 lines, with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states, in line with UN resolutions, international law and prior agreements -- can ensure the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people as well as a just and lasting peace and stability in the region."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from the UN Headquarters.
(XHTV)