A UN agency has warned of worsening famine in Gaza amid Israel-Hamas war. Half a million people in Gaza face starvation, 2.3 million people face severe food shortages, and 1.5 million Palestinians displaced by the war have taken refuge in Rafah, the UN Palestine Refugee Agency (UNRWA) has warned that famine is stalking Gaza as aid agencies struggle to deliver food to the enclave’s north.
Philippe Lazzarini said on Sunday that humanitarian aid had not reached people in northern Gaza for more than a month.
A two-month-old Palestinian boy died of starvation during Israel’s war on Gaza.UNRWA last delivered food aid to northern Gaza on January 23. Aid agencies claim Israel is delaying deliveries. Tel Aviv denies the allegation as it prepares to report to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on measures taken to alleviate suffering in the besieged enclave.
Calls for food deliveries to Gaza are being denied amid ongoing hostilities between Israel and Hamas. The situation is turning into a “man-made disaster.” At least 500,000 people are facing famine, while nearly 2.3 million people in Gaza face severe food shortages, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). On Sunday, the two-month-old Palestinian boy dies of starvation, reports say
Israel – which controls Gaza’s border crossings – has opened only one entry point into the enclave since the start of the war, and UN agencies say it has imposed “endless vetting procedures” for trucks to pass through. Convoys were also stopped. Since February 9, the average number of trucks entering Gaza per day has been around 55, compared to 500 before the conflict began, according to OCHA.
The agency reports that the flow of trucks has decreased sharply in recent days. According to UNRWA and US officials, Palestinian police officers stopped providing escorts after Israeli strikes killed at least eight people in southern Rafah.
This led to a breakdown in the civilian order, prompting others to abandon their posts. Last week, the World Food Program (WFP) announced the suspension of aid deliveries to northern Gaza after crowds of hungry people threw supplies and beat the driver.
Convoys also came under fire, with videos confirmed on social media showing Palestinians fleeing for cover, accompanied by gunfire and plumes of smoke from smoke bombs. Palestinian children can also be seen scooping up flour spilled from the ground. UN agencies say Israel’s lack of aid is further complicating deliveries.
According to OCHA, the majority of aid missions to northern Gaza between January 1 and February 15 – 39 out of 77 – were rejected by Israel, and less than 20 percent were assisted by Israeli authorities. Israel, however, denies that there are any barriers to aid deliveries.
“There is no limit on the humanitarian aid that can be sent to the civilian population of Gaza and northern Gaza, Israel will tell the ICJ on Monday what it has done to pave the way for the increased delivery of humanitarian aid, one of the measures the UN Supreme Court ordered Israel to comply with last month to stop the genocide in Gaza.
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But Human Rights Watch said Israel was not complying with the court’s order, and in the weeks since, the average number of aid trucks arriving in Gaza per day has dropped by 30 percent. The Israeli government ignored the court’s ruling and reportedly stepped up repression, including withholding life-saving aid in some ways.
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2024-02-26 14:44:34
