Gaza Aid is a simple “teaspoon” of what is necessary, explains Guterres, in the middle of the expansion of famine and destruction through the enclave.
The Palestinians of Gaza endure “which can be the most cruel phase of this cruel conflict,” said United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, warning that the growing military campaign of Israel and prolonged blockage pushed the population on the verge of famine.
“For almost 80 days, Israel blocked the entry of vital international aid,” Guterres said in a statement on Friday, condemning the extent of human suffering. “The entire population of Gaza faces the risk of famine.”
Although Israel has only authorized several hundred trucks to cross Gaza this week after a partial relaxation of its 11 -week seat, Guterres described the flow of supplies as terribly insufficient.
“All the help authorized so far is equivalent to a teaspoon of aid when a help flow is necessary,” he said.
The UN chief said the Israeli campaign has intensified with “excruciating levels of death and destruction”, while access to humanitarian groups remains dangerous and erratic. “Eighty percent of Gaza has been declared a militarized Israeli area, or under evacuation orders,” he noted.
“Without a quick, reliable, safe and sustained access, more people will die – and the long -term consequences on the entire population will be deep,” Guterres to journalists in New York told.
In Gaza, the Palestinians struggle daily to “find food and drinking water, while queuing for hours in front of everything that remains of the local operational community kitchens which provide only a small amount of food for a hungry population,” Hani Mahmoud of Tel Aviv Tribune told Gaza City.
“The quantity of food or the help that has been authorized in the past two days is not sufficient or sufficient, and does not deal with the deepening of the humanitarian crisis caused by months of Israeli devastation and bombardment through the band,” he said.
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks have killed at least 76 Palestinians in Gaza since Friday. At least 53,822 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 7, 2023 and more than 122,382 others injured – most women and children.
“ Call for vital help ”
Israel says that around 300 trucks have entered Gaza since Monday via Karem Abu Salem Crossing, known as Kerem Shalom to Israelis, but the UN says that only a third of these deliveries have reached warehouses inside the enclave due to safety and chaos constraints.
The figure is well below the more than 500 trucks which entered Gaza daily before the start of the War of Israel against Gaza in October 2023.
A new delivery mechanism supported by the United States – managed by the new Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) – should resume the distribution of aid by the end of the month. Under the plan, private entrepreneurs would escort supplies to secure Hubs, where the civil teams would manage the distribution.
But the UN refused to participate, saying that the regime does not meet basic humanitarian standards.
“The United Nations has been clear: we will not participate in any regime which does not respect international law and the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,” said Guterres.
He stressed that the UN already has the infrastructure to respond. “The supplies – 160,000 pallets, enough to fill nearly 9,000 trucks – wait,” he said.
“This is my call for vital help for people who have long suffered from Gaza: let’s do it well. And let’s do it right away. “