UN Calling Attention to Gaza's Plight

France24

Last modification: 22/03/2010 - Ban Ki-moon - Gaza Strip - Israeli-Palestinian conflict

UN chief calls attention to humanitarian plight in Gaza

UN chief Ban Ki-moon called for the end of the Israeli blockade of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Sunday during a visit to the enclave that is part of a regional tour aimed at reviving peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians.
By News Wires (text)

AFP - UN chief Ban Ki-moon crossed into the Gaza Strip on Sunday, expressing solidarity with the plight of the Palestinians and urging an end to an Israeli blockade of the Hamas-run territory.

Ban was making his second visit to the Gaza Strip since the 22-day Gaza War ended in January 2009 as part of a regional tour aimed at reviving the peace process, which ground to a halt when the fighting broke out.

He entered the war-battered Palestinian enclave from Israel through the Erez Crossing, where he was met by a small group of people waving Palestinian flags.

Ban then began touring some of the hardest-hit areas of Gaza. He was due later to inaugurate projects to build 150 homes, a flour mill and a sewage treatment plant, all of which he said were approved by Israel in recent days.

In the occupied West Bank on Saturday, the UN Secretary General had said his visit to Gaza was to show his support for Palestinians...link to complete article