CARICOM expresses 'horror' over worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has expressed "horror" at the worsening "catastrophic humanitarian crisis" in Gaza in a renewed call for an immediate ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. 

CARICOM says it is concerned at the mounting death toll on the civilian population, including women and children, particularly in Gaza, but also in other areas of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. 

It has called on "all states" to respect and ensure respect for international humanitarian law in accordance with the Geneva Conventions. 

"CARICOM... condemns any disregard for international humanitarian law, human rights and the laws of war that have resulted in the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza and deprivation of access to basic necessities including medical care for the people of Palestine," the regional bloc said in a statement Sunday. 

CARICOM reaffirmed its "conviction that a lasting, two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can be achieved only by peaceful means, based on the relevant United Nations Resolutions and in accordance with international law". 

What CARICOM is calling for:

1. an immediate ceasefire in Gaza;

2. the immediate release of all hostages and for their humane treatment at all times in compliance with international law;

3. all parties to immediately and fully comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law; and

4. the immediate, safe, unimpeded access for adequate, sustained humanitarian support throughout Gaza including food, water, medicines, medical care, fuel and electricity.

On Sunday, health officials and people trapped inside Gaza's largest hospital rejected Israel's claims that it was helping babies and others evacuate Sunday, saying fighting continued just outside the facility where incubators lay idle with no electricity and critical supplies were running out.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed urgent international calls for a cease-fire unless it includes the release of all the nearly 240 hostages captured by Hamas in the October 7 rampage that triggered the war.

A day after Netanyahu said Israel was bringing its “full force” with the aim of ending Hamas' 16-year rule in Gaza, residents reported heavy airstrikes and shelling, including around Shifa Hospital.

Israel, without providing evidence, has accused Hamas of concealing a command post inside and under the compound, allegations denied by Hamas and hospital staff.

The Health Ministry said there are 1,500 patients at Shifa, along with 1,500 medical personnel and between 15,000 and 20,000 people seeking shelter.

The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service said another Gaza City hospital, Al-Quds, is “no longer operational” because it has run out of fuel with 6,000 people trapped there. Gaza's sole power plant was forced to shut down a month ago, and Israel has barred fuel imports, saying Hamas would use them for military purposes.

The United States has pushed for temporary pauses that would allow for wider distribution of badly needed aid to civilians in the besieged territory, where conditions are increasingly dire.

But Israel has only agreed to brief daily periods during which civilians can flee the area of ground combat in northern Gaza and head south on foot along two main roads. Israel continues to strike what it says are militant targets across southern Gaza, often killing women and children.

More than 11,000 Palestinians, two-thirds of them women and minors, have been killed since the war began, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilian and militant deaths. About 2,700 people have been reported missing.

At least 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mostly civilians killed in the initial Hamas attack. Forty-six Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ground offensive began.

-Reports from the Associated Press contributed to this article.

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