International bodies have warned of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza in light of a bleak famine scene, aid workers being caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli occupation, and the entry of aid obstructed.
Jagan Chapagin, Executive Director of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said that the food crisis in Gaza has reached a critical point, with the risk of hunger increasing daily.
He explained that there is still an urgent need to take immediate action to prevent further loss of life in Gaza due to famine.
He expressed his deep concern about the recent bombing that occurred near the International Committee of the Red Cross office in Gaza, which caused damage and endangered the lives of hundreds of displaced civilians living in tents.
He recalled that all parties to the conflict must fulfill their obligations under international humanitarian law and ensure the protection of civilians and health care workers.
Targeting aid workers
For its part, the World Food Program said that the hostile operating environment in the Gaza Strip makes it almost impossible to deliver aid.
In turn, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, said that the risks facing humanitarian workers in Gaza have become unbearable.
Dujarric declined to confirm reports that the United Nations has informed Israel that it will suspend relief operations in Gaza unless the occupation takes urgent steps to provide better protection for humanitarian workers.
Catastrophic rates
The results of an analysis of acute food insecurity in the Gaza Strip showed that the residents of the Strip face a real danger due to the low levels of food security reaching catastrophic levels that herald famine throughout.
The report also indicated that the recent path of providing relief aid in Gaza is negative and largely unstable.
According to the IPC Initiative’s report, more than 495,000 people, or more than a fifth of Gaza’s population, face catastrophic levels of food insecurity.
The report stated: “The operating space available to humanitarian organizations, and the ability to safely provide assistance to the population, is constantly diminishing as the current conditions deteriorate and become highly unstable.”
As for the chief economist at the World Food Program, Arif Hussein, he said that declaring a famine or not declaring it is not the goal of the UN report on the Integrated Interim Classification of Food Security in Gaza, indicating that the situation in the Strip is very bad indeed, and action must be taken before the famine is officially declared. .
Regarding the necessary conditions for a rapid humanitarian response in Gaza, Hussein said that the provision of goods at sufficient levels must be ensured, the safety of humanitarian workers must be ensured, and the safety of those receiving aid must also be ensured. The UN official doubted the possibility of achieving these things without a ceasefire.
In the latest announcement of victims of hunger, Tel Aviv Tribune’s correspondent reported that the child Azzam Al-Shaer was martyred due to malnutrition as a result of the starvation policy pursued by the Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The father of the martyred child told Tel Aviv Tribune that he was unable to provide milk and treatment for his son – who is disabled – during the last four months.
The attack on Rafah caused the closure of the land crossing on the Gaza border with Egypt, which was a main route for delivering food and other supplies, in addition to being an evacuation point for seriously ill or injured civilians.