International Committee of the Red Cross: 'No excuse' for 'abhorrent' Gaza starvation

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in New York issued a statement on Friday decrying conditions in Gaza and calling on 'states' to uphold international legal obligations.

The statement does not name Israel except for one mention: that Israel allow for the ICRC to resume visits to Palestinian detainees.

"There is no excuse for what is happening in Gaza. The scale of human suffering and the stripping of human dignity have long exceeded every acceptable standard – both legal and moral," the ICRC said.

"This tragedy must end now – immediately and decisively. Every political hesitation, every attempt at justification of the horrors being committed under international watch will forever be judged as a collective failure to preserve humanity in war," it warned.

"States must uphold their obligation under the Geneva Conventions to respect and ensure respect for international humanitarian law (IHL), including by ensuring that the arms they transfer do not contribute to violations of IHL," the statement said.

"This means resuming the rapid, unimpeded and impartial delivery of humanitarian relief across Gaza. This means releasing all remaining hostages immediately and unconditionally. This means allowing the ICRC to resume visits to Palestinian detainees in Israeli places of detention."