The World Health Organization said Monday its facilities in Gaza had come under Israeli attack, echoing calls from Western countries for an immediate ceasefire as Israel expanded military operations to the central city of Deir el-Balah.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Israeli military had entered the UN agency's staff residence, forced women and children to evacuate on foot, and handcuffed, stripped and interrogated male staff at gunpoint.

Earlier, more than two dozen Western countries called for an immediate end to the war, saying suffering there had "reached new depths".

After more than 21 months of fighting that have triggered catastrophic humanitarian conditions for Gaza's more than two million people, Israeli allies Britain, France, Australia, Canada and 21 other countries, plus the EU, said in a joint statement that the war "must end now".

"The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths," the signatories added, urging a negotiated ceasefire, the release of hostages held by Palestinian militants and the free flow of much-needed aid.

Tedros, who also condemned an attack on the WHO's main warehouse in Deir el-Balah, echoed that call: "A ceasefire is not just necessary, it is overdue," he said on X.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the........

© Al Monitor