'History will judge us all': UN Secretary General calls for a ceasefire as Israel carries out more raids into Gaza

UN secretary general Antonio Guterres posted on X, formally known as Twitter, for a ceasefire after saying "this is a moment of truth".

He wrote: "I repeat my call for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Middle East, the unconditional release of all hostages, and the delivery of life-saving supplies at the scale needed. Everyone must assume their responsibilities. This is a moment of truth. History will judge us all."

The plea comes after Israel announced they will expand ground operations into Gaza after warning citizens to move south. 

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, a spokesman for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), said: "In addition to the attacks that we carried out in recent days, ground forces are expanding their activity this evening. The IDF is acting with great force... to achieve the objectives of the war."

The nation has said troops used vessels to attack "Hamas military infrastructure", with support from aircraft, along the coast in the southern Gaza Strip overnight, and that they "operated in a compound used by Hamas'[s] commando naval forces" before leaving the area.

According to Gaza's authorities, more than 7,300 Palestinians have been killed in waves of airstrikes by Israel in retaliation for a cross-border massacre carried out by Hamas in the south of the country on 7 October.

Officials said the dead include more than 3,000 children and more than 1,500 women and more than 1,400 people in Israel, mostly civilians, were killed during the initial Hamas attack, according to the Israeli government.

It also said Hamas is holding at least 224 captives inside Gaza, including women, children and the elderly, but the overall number of deaths outweighs the combined total of all four previous conflicts between Israel and Hamas, estimated at around 4,000, and over one million people in Gaza have fled their homes. 

The ICRC's Fabrizio Carboni said: "This crucial humanitarian assistance is a small dose of relief, but it´s not enough. Our surgical team and medical supplies will help relieve the extreme pressure on Gaza's doctors and nurses. But safe, sustained humanitarian access is urgently needed. This humanitarian catastrophe is deepening by the hour."