Dire humanitarian crisis worsens, as at least 30 people reported killed in air strikes on refugee camps in central Gaza. The United Nations has warned that it is becoming increasingly difficult to get desperately needed aid into Gaza. The UN’s humanitarian aid chief on Friday called out the “impossible situation” facing people in Gaza and those trying to help them, as the humanitarian situation on the ground worsens and dozens more civilians are reported killed in Israeli attacks.
Martin Griffiths, the UN’s humanitarian aid chief, expressed frustration at how life-saving assistance is being hampered from entering the war-torn Strip. Griffiths listed 14 obstructions to getting humanitarian relief into the enclave, including constant bombardments and aid convoys coming under fire, three layers of inspections before an aid truck can enter the Palestinian territory, a constant list of rejected items, and aid workers themselves being killed and displaced by the war.
Illustrating Griffiths’ point, Israeli soldiers fired on an aid convoy on Friday as it returned from northern Gaza along a route designated by the Israeli army, according to Thomas White, the director of the UH agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, in Gaza. While no aid workers were injured, one vehicle sustained damage, emphasizing that aid workers should never be a target.
The persistent difficulty in getting humanitarian relief into Gaza comes despite the United Nations Security Council passing a resolution last week to boost aid. Israel’s war has killed more than 21,300 Palestinians and displaced 85 percent of the population since October 7. Amid the bombardments, a military blockade on the enclave and the restrictions on aid shipments are imperiling the health of hundreds of thousands of people.
Reporters on the ground describe displaced and famished people from the central and northern parts of the Strip forced to queue for hours for food assistance. The population of Gaza has been displaced multiple times in the past three months, fleeing with whatever they can carry, leading to UN facilities being packed full beyond their maximum capacity.
Aid groups say the situation is desperate, and UN agencies have warned that 40 percent of Gaza’s population is facing an imminent risk of famine. With most hospitals and clinics out of service, the risk of an epidemic is inevitable, leaving people with nowhere to go for medical treatment.
In central Gaza, Israeli forces continue to push people south as they target sites that include refugee camps, while Tel Aviv insists that Hamas fighters are hiding in those areas. Air strikes on Nuseirat and Maghazi refugee camps on Friday resulted in the reported deaths of 35 people. This escalation in aerial bombardment has left the population frustrated, especially after the UN Security Council resolution was passed.
The UN has issued evacuation orders, forcing 150,000 people to leave central Gaza as the Israeli army continues its offensive. Meanwhile, 20 seriously ill patients in Gaza are expected to be allowed to leave for medical treatment in Egypt, including a one-month-old girl with a head injury. The Palestinian Ministry of Health has repeatedly appealed for patients with serious medical conditions to be allowed to leave for life-saving treatment outside the besieged territory.
The dire situation in Gaza calls for immediate attention and action to alleviate the suffering of the civilian population. The international community must work together to ensure that aid can reach those in need and that a lasting resolution is reached to prevent further loss of life and displacement.
