The United Nations has called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza, saying the situation there has reached “catastrophic levels”.

The UN secretary general Antonio Guterres told a peace summit in Egypt that it was time for “action to end this god-awful nightmare”.

It came as the first trucks carrying aid entered Gaza from Egypt via the Rafah crossing. Earlier, Hamas had released two American hostages

Israel has said it’s stepping up its airstrikes on Gaza in response to the killing of its citizens by Hamas. Gunmen raided Israel on 7 October, killing 1,400 people and taking around 200 hostages.

Since then more than 4,400 people have been killed in Israeli air and artillery strikes in Gaza, according to Palestinian officials.