GAZA: Fighting back tears, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday made an emotional appeal to Israel, urging the country to show “mercy” in its ongoing war in Gaza, warning that continued violence would not bring a lasting solution and is also harming Israel itself.
Speaking at the WHO’s annual assembly, Dr. Tedros said he empathized deeply with the suffering of Gazans, referencing his own childhood experiences during wartime in Ethiopia.
“I can feel how people in Gaza would feel at the moment. I can smell it. I can visualize it. I can even hear the sounds. And this is because of PTSD,” said the 60-year-old, visibly moved.
“You can imagine how people are suffering. It’s really wrong to weaponize food. It’s very wrong to weaponize medical supplies.”
His comments come as the United Nations begins distributing around 90 truckloads of aid—Gaza’s first deliveries since Israel imposed a complete blockade on March 2.
Dr. Tedros stressed that only a political solution would yield lasting peace.
“A call for peace is actually in the best interests of Israel itself,” he said. “The war is hurting Israel, and it will not bring a lasting solution. I ask if you can have mercy. It’s good for you, good for the Palestinians, and good for humanity.”
Dr. Michael Ryan, WHO emergencies director, echoed the urgency, saying 2.1 million people in Gaza are “in imminent danger of death.”
“We need to end the starvation. We need to release all hostages, and we need to resupply and bring the health system back online,” he said. “As an ex-hostage, I can say all hostages should be released. Their families are suffering.”
According to the WHO, Gaza faces catastrophic shortages of food, water, medicine, fuel, and shelter. Four major hospitals suspended services in the past week due to their proximity to combat zones or direct attacks.
Only 19 of the Gaza Strip’s 36 hospitals remain operational, with staff working under “impossible conditions.” The WHO said at least 94 percent of all hospitals in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed, with the northern region “stripped of nearly all health care.”
Across the territory, only 2,000 hospital beds are available—“grossly insufficient to meet the current needs,” the agency warned.
“The destruction is systematic,” the WHO said. “Hospitals are rehabilitated and resupplied, only to be exposed to hostilities or attacked again. This destructive cycle must end.”
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