UN chief Antonio Guterres has warned that the situation in Gaza is becoming “more desperate with time” and warned against “collective punishment” of Palestinians.
US President Joe Biden stressed to Netanyahu that, while Israel has the right to defend itself, it must do so “in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law that prioritizes the protection of civilians”.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron earlier “stressed the importance of getting immediate humanitarian assistance” to Gaza.
Limited aid has flowed into Gaza from Egypt under a US-brokered deal, but the quantity, 117 trucks so far, is far less than the hundreds of trucks needed per day, according to aid agencies.
Anti-Israel anger has flared up across the region and beyond.
In Russia’s Muslim-majority Dagestan, police said they had arrested 60 people after a mob stormed an airport on Sunday to attack Jewish travelers arriving from Tel Aviv.
Washington has warned Israel’s enemies – particularly the Iran-allied “Axis of Resistance” groups – not to get fully involved after a series of attacks in the Middle East.
The Israeli military has carried out cross-border shelling with Hezbollah in Lebanon and attacked targets in Syria, including on Monday when it said it was responding to launches “towards Israeli territory.”
Lebanon’s acting prime minister, Najib Mikati, told AFP that “I am doing my duty to prevent Lebanon from entering the war”.
Violence has also increased in the occupied West Bank, where health officials say about 120 Palestinians have been killed since the Gaza war began.
Germany on Monday called on Israel to protect Palestinians in the West Bank from attacks by “extremist” Israeli settlers.
A knife-wielding Palestinian stabbed and seriously wounded an Israeli police officer in occupied East Jerusalem on Monday before the attacker was shot dead, police said.