The heads of several United Nations agencies on Saturday published an open letter calling for an immediate end to all military action that violates international law in the Middle East.

The statement, penned by UN humanitarian boss Tom Fletcher and other agency leaders, decried “sustained violations of the rules of war and international humanitarian law.” 

Blasting the current situation brought on by the US-Israeli war against Iran, which was launched on February 28, and with the nightmare of Gaza still unresolved, UN agency heads said: “In just the last month across the Middle East, thousands of civilians have been killed and injured. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced, many multiple times.”

“The numbers continue to rise and essential services are increasingly difficult to access,” read the statement, with agency leaders expressing concern over the conflict’s impact on “women and children and others with specific needs” as well as on prices for food and fuel around the globe.

The international body also pointed out that aid workers are paying an increasingly high price to help those trapped in war zones. 

“Fourteen aid workers have been killed or injured in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, eight in Iran and five in Lebanon” since the beginning of this year, said the statement, which called this “an alarming toll.”

Finally, the statement very strongly condemned “all attacks on civilians, including humanitarian and aid workers, as well as civilian objects.” 

While urging governments and armed non-state actors to respect the legal obligation to protect all civilians, the statement concluded by saying, “all violations must be met with accountability.”