UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday welcomed the Israeli decision to reopen its border crossing with Gaza to its full operating capacity and to expand the fishing zone off the coast of the Palestinian enclave.
Through his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, Guterres said he is encouraged to see that "those concerned" have responded to calls to avoid the devastating impact of the conflict on the civilian population in and around Gaza.
He called on all parties to support the efforts of UN Special Coordinator Nickolay Mladenov and Egypt to avoid an escalation of the conflict.
Earlier Wednesday, Israel reopened the Kerem Shalom crossing, Gaza's sole functional goods crossing, for the entry and exit of permitted goods.
Between July 9 and Aug. 14, Israel had allowed only food, medical and limited fuel deliveries into the blockaded enclave, and prohibited the exit of any goods.
Thanks to the reopening, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that more than 400 truckloads of goods are expected to enter Gaza.
In addition, Israel increased the permissible fishing zone from three back to six nautical miles off northern Gaza's shore and to nine nautical miles in the southern shore.
Israel's larger blockade and other restrictions in Gaza however remain in place.
