8:14 a.m. ET, November 9, 2023
UN aid chief warns Gaza conflict is ‘a conflagration that could engulf the region’
From CNN’s Dalal Mawad in Paris: Martin Griffiths, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief, speaks during an international conference for civilians in Gaza at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris, France, on November 9. Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images
The United Nations emergency relief chief warned on Thursday that the war between Israel and Hamas could spread across the region.
“War is indeed a virus that always wants to spread, and the current conflict is a conflagration that could devastate the region,” said Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator.
“It could spread and we will think that these will be the good days when we see what could happen tomorrow,” he said in remarks at the International Humanitarian Conference on Gaza hosted by France in Paris.
Griffiths added that “the United Nations cannot be part of a unilateral decision to evict thousands of people in Gaza to so-called safe zones.”
“Civilians must be protected. Their needs must be met wherever they are,” he said.
Griffiths reiterated the UN’s call for a ceasefire. “There has been a lot of discussion about the value of breaks, and I am not one to deny the value of breaks. But that is not the same as a ceasefire,” he said. On Wednesday, G7 foreign ministers expressed support for humanitarian aid pauses in Gaza to support aid deliveries, civil movements and the release of hostages – but did not call for a ceasefire.
Further background information: The Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 raised concerns that the conflict could spread throughout the region, with Hezbollah potentially invading from Lebanon and Iran. The US has warned regional players against getting drawn into the war and urged Iran and its allies not to escalate. Iran, which supports Hamas, has denied involvement in the Oct. 7 attack but said it morally supports the “anti-Israel resistance,” which includes Hamas, Hezbollah and other Iran-backed militias. Hezbollah has been exchanging fire on Israel’s northern border since the beginning of the Gaza war. However, these conflicts were limited to the border areas. There were also fighting in Syria and Iraq, with Iran-backed militias launching several drone attacks on US forces. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis have attempted an airstrike on Israel, which the Israeli military says it has foiled.
CNN’s Nadeen Ebrahim contributed to this story.