In his daily press briefing, Guterres’ spokesman Stéphane Dujarric looked ahead to the future of Gaza, saying that security, dignity and hope for the conflict-affected population must be restored quickly, reiterating his call for a two-State solution. “This will require urgent efforts to support and strengthen the new Palestinian Government and its institutions, including preparing the Palestinian Authority to resume its responsibilities in Gaza. We must also move forward with tangible and irreversible steps to create a political horizon,” he urged. Asked whether Guterres was calling for the removal of the Islamist group Hamas from power in Gaza, Dujarric clarified that the UN chief is calling for “the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza,” without mentioning Hamas in his response. Spain, Ireland and Norway today formalised their recognition of the state of Palestine, joining 137 of the 193 countries of the United Nations (UN) that have already done so, according to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). This is a symbolic and diplomatic support for the Palestinian cause, but with little impact on the ground, where the borders have been blurred by the occupation, between settlements, concrete walls and Israeli military presence. Hamas has controlled – with the limitations imposed by Israel – the Gaza Strip since the elections held in the Palestinian territories in 2006, while the Palestinian Authority, overseen by the nationalist party Fatah, controls the West Bank. “The devastation and misery of the past seven months have reinforced the absolute necessity for Israelis, Palestinians, regional States and the wider international community to take urgent steps that will allow the parties to return to the long overdue political path towards a two-State solution. The UN will continue to support all such efforts,” he added. Guterres today again “condemned in the strongest terms” Sunday’s Israeli airstrikes in Rafah, which hit tents sheltering displaced people and killed 45, saying he was “heartbroken by the images of the dead and injured,” including children. “As the Secretary-General has said before, the horror and the suffering must stop immediately,” the spokesman said. Dujarric also noted that the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is now compounded by “the very real prospect of man-made famine.” In that regard, he reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, also stressing that the recent orders of the International Court of Justice – for Israel to halt its offensive in southern Gaza – “are binding and must be complied with.” On 7 October last year, Israel declared war on the Gaza Strip to “eradicate” Hamas after the latter had carried out an unprecedented attack on Israeli territory hours earlier, killing more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians. Classified as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and Israel, Hamas also took 252 hostages, 124 of whom remain in captivity and 37 have died in the meantime, according to the latest figures from the Israeli army. The war, which today entered its 235th day and continues to threaten to spread throughout the Middle East region, has so far killed more than 36,000 people in the Gaza Strip and injured 81,000 and about 10,000 missing, presumably buried in the rubble, mostly civilians, according to updated figures from local authorities. The conflict has also caused almost two million displaced people, plunging the overcrowded and poor Palestinian enclave into a serious humanitarian crisis, with more than 1.1 million people in a “catastrophic hunger situation” that is claiming victims – “the highest number ever recorded” by the UN in studies on food security in the world. Read Also: Gaza? "Only a third of hospitals remain partially functional" (Portuguese version)