Israel's plan to take over Gaza City sparked widespread outrage at a rare emergency weekend meeting held Sunday by the UN Security Council. Yet the session ended with no resolution as the United States, a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, sided with Israel.

"If these (Israeli) plans are implemented, they will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings, and destruction, compounding the unbearable suffering of the population," UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas Miroslav Jenca warned the Council.

Israel's Security Cabinet on Thursday approved a plan proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military to "take control" of Gaza City and the surrounding areas, with little detail specified. According to the Israeli media, Israel has set Oct. 7, the second anniversary of the latest round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, as a deadline for civilians to leave Gaza before its ground offensive.

"We are already witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe of unimaginable scale in Gaza," Jenca said, reiterating that the only way to stop the immense human suffering in Gaza is through a full, immediate, and permanent ceasefire. Jenca called for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as rapid, safe, unimpeded and large-scale delivery of humanitarian aid to the enclave.

The European members of the Security Council -- Britain, Denmark, France, Greece and Slovenia -- which called for the emergency meeting, also condemned the Israeli decision, calling for the plan to be reversed and for urgent action to halt starvation in the Gaza Strip.

The five countries "reiterate that any attempts at annexation or of settlement extension violate international law" in a joint statement before the meeting, cautioning that expanding military operations will only worsen civilian suffering.

Most of the Council members expressed similar concerns and criticism. China called for a rejection of "any attempts to alter the demographic or territorial status of Gaza," while Russia described the Israeli plan as "extremely dangerous steps" undermining "the already fragile prospects for the peaceful settlement of the Middle East conflict."

Riyad Mansour, permanent observer of the State of Palestine to the UN, called Israel's takeover plan "illegal and immoral," urging "the mobilization of all the tools available to stop them."

"Israel is prolonging the war not to disarm Hamas, but to prevent independent Palestinian statehood," Mansour warned. "Its goal is the destruction of the Palestinian people through forced transfer and massacres to facilitate its annexation of their land."

Also at the meeting, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that hunger in Gaza has reached "starvation, pure and simple," with hunger-related deaths rising, especially among children with severe malnutrition, and aid deliveries severely hampered by insecurity and access restrictions.