UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.
Guterres also praised Egypt for its efforts to restore calm in close coordination with the United Nations, according to a statement from his office. In addition, he expressed his sympathies to the victims and their families.
“He is very pained by the loss of life and injuries, especially children, resulting from airstrikes in Gaza and the indiscriminate fire of rockets into Israel from population centers in Gaza by Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other violent groups,” the statement continued.
Guterres underlined the United Nations’ commitment to accomplishing a two-state solution based on relevant United Nations resolutions by urging all parties to observe the ceasefire.
A ceasefire brokered by Egypt between Israel and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip went into effect at 11:30 p.m. local time on Sunday night.
The ceasefire deal followed three days of Israeli airstrikes on Gaza that, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, left at least 44 Palestinians dead and over 360 others injured.
