The World Food Program (WFP) stated this Thursday that it has not been able to bring aid to the population of northern Gaza since December 1, when fighting between Israel and Hamas resumed after a truce that lasted seven days.
At a press conference held this Thursday at UN headquarters in New York, WFP Deputy Executive Director Carl Skau spoke of his recent visit to the Gaza Strip and described the situation as “increasingly desperate and chaotic.” “, intensifying the scenario of food insecurity in the Palestinian area. enclave.
During the seven-day truce between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, the WFP was able to reach more people in Gaza and discovered that half of the population is dying of hunger.
“The sad reality is that nine out of ten people don’t eat enough, they don’t eat every day and they don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” Skau said.
“What we also saw was fear in people’s eyes. There are a lot of questions, a lot of confusion and they don’t know what will happen next,” he explained, recounting the “desperation” he observed in the overcrowded shelters, which could lead to the collapse of the law. and order, as the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, had already warned.
Humanitarian operations are also on the verge of collapse, as orderly delivery of aid is not possible under current conditions, and Skau advocates opening more border crossings to increase the volume of aid entering the Palestinian enclave.
The WFP official also requests the entry of commercial trucks, so a “humanitarian ceasefire” is essential to allow aid to reach the entire Gaza Strip.
“The good news is that during the seven-day truce we were able to deliver aid in an orderly manner, delivering products such as wheat, oil, tuna, beans and other goods. We also had trucks and trains heading north, but this has not been possible since fighting resumed,” he lamented.
Given the scale and complexity of the situation, WFP was able to purchase products in the region and is ready to deliver food to the millions of people in need, “if conditions allow.”
Speaking to reporters about the Israeli government’s accusations that there are no obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid, blaming UN logistics for this aid not reaching the people, the deputy executive director of the WFP admitted “challenges” in the first weeks of the conflict. , but argued that the problem is not in the UN system, but in the lack of security conditions and access to the enclave.
Hamas’s initial attack on Israel, unprecedented since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, caused, according to Tel Aviv authorities, 1,200 deaths and more than 200 hostages.
In retaliation, Israel bombed Gaza and blocked the entry of essential goods such as water, medicine and fuel.
Although the two sides called a truce for a few days to exchange prisoners and hostages, as well as to allow access for humanitarian aid, fighting resumed and the death toll in Gaza exceeds 18,000 – 70% of whom are women. , children and adolescents -, victims of intense Israeli bombings on the Palestinian enclave, according to the Ministry of Health supervised by Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007.
Source: TSF
