U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged an immediate cease-fire in the devastated Gaza Strip, which is facing an "epic humanitarian disaster."

"I repeat my call, the world's call for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, the unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate surge in humanitarian aid," Guterres said in a video address to an international donors' conference in Kuwait on Sunday.

"But a cease-fire will only be the start. It will be a long road back from the devastation and trauma of this war," he added.

Israeli strikes on Gaza continued Sunday after it expanded an evacuation order for Rafah despite international outcry over its military incursion into eastern areas of the city, effectively shutting a key aid crossing.

"The war in Gaza is causing horrific human suffering, devastating lives, tearing families apart and rendering huge numbers of people homeless, hungry and traumatized," Guterres said.

His remarks were played at the opening of the conference in Kuwait organized by the International Islamic Charitable Organization (IICO) and the U.N.'s humanitarian coordination organization OCHA.

On Friday, in Nairobi, the U.N. head warned Gaza faced an "epic humanitarian disaster" if Israel launched a full-scale ground operation in Rafah.

The conflict was triggered by the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion of southern Israel, abducting about 250 people and killing around 1,200.

Israel has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians in its genocidal war, according to Gaza’s local health officials, caused widespread destruction and plunged the territory into an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.

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