2:37 p.m. ET, April 4, 2024
Humanitarian organizations face daily challenges in providing aid to Gaza
Humanitarian aid organizations operating in Gaza are encountering significant obstacles in maintaining consistent aid delivery due to on-going security concerns, according to reports. The unstable security situation often forces these organizations to suspend daily missions, prioritizing the well-being and safety of their staff. While the decision to suspend operations is not made lightly, it is ultimately deemed necessary in order to mitigate potential risks and ensure utmost security.
Oxfam—one of the leading humanitarian organizations—explicitly highlighted the intricacy of their decision-making process. Scott Paul, associate director for peace and security at Oxfam, emphasized the daily struggle faced by the organization in determining whether to proceed or suspend operations in Gaza.
“On a daily basis, we are suspending some operations because it’s simply not safe and our duty of care to our staff outweighs any humanitarian imperative based on our ability to respond and make a difference,” Paul explained.
Recent tragic incidents, such as the Israeli airstrikes causing the loss of seven World Central Kitchen staffers, have further underscored the precarious conditions aid workers find themselves in. These incidents have magnified the risks and dangers encountered by nonprofit organizations, prompting intense dialogue around staff safety and security measures.
Médicines Sans Frontièrs (also known as Doctors Without Borders) has voiced their current limitations in delivering humanitarian aid under the prevailing circumstances. President Isabelle Defourny explained that the conditions required to effectively provide assistance and create a meaningful impact are not yet in place.
While Médicines Sans Frontièrs remains committed to their mission in Gaza, Defourny stressed that finding viable solutions and continuously reassessing their capabilities is an ongoing challenge.
Save the Children, an organization actively engaged on the ground in Gaza, echoed the dynamic nature of the situation. Karyn Beattie, currently in Gaza, described the ever-evolving circumstances and the constant struggle faced by aid organizations to strategize and adapt to the shifting conflict.
“For a little while, it’s a bit quiet around your guest house, and then it’s not because the conflict has moved. For a little while, you can get trucks through for just a day or so in a relatively decent flow and then suddenly you can’t. So in terms of what we’re doing and how we’re working on what to do in the future, we’re constantly trying to figure out what are some of the ways we could try to get ahead of things,” Beattie explained. “It’s complicated.”
