HAMILTON, Canada

A senior Board of Peace official warned Tuesday that the situation in the Gaza Strip "remains very, very difficult" despite improvements brought by the first phase of a ceasefire agreement.

"Despite significant improvements through the implementation of phase one, the situation in Gaza remains very, very difficult," said Nickolay Mladenov, high representative for Gaza, Board of Peace, at a UN Security Council session on Palestine. "Essential services are operating at a fraction of pre-war capacity. The health care system is in collapse. There is no functioning economy."

Outlining three immediate priorities, Mladenov noted the first is that "the Rafah crossing must remain open and permit more people to cross in and out of Gaza," warning that "any restriction on its operation directly impedes the implementation of phase two of the ceasefire."

On humanitarian aid, he said the "current flow is not adequate for the scale of need," stressing that "the number of trucks allowed to bring goods into Gaza increases in the immediate future." He noted that "the pipeline is ready, but access must be improved."

He also encouraged accelerating temporary housing solutions, stating that "over 2 million people cannot continue to endure undignified living conditions."

Saying that "no plan is perfect," Mladenov urged full implementation of the ceasefire deal and argued that it is "the only document that connects decommissioning, reconstruction, civilian transition and the reunification of Palestinian institutions into a single sequence."

"If we are serious about advancing peace between Israelis and Palestinians, then we must be equally serious about implementing this plan," he said.