Sewage is overflowing in the streets of Gaza and its population is facing the increasing threat of disease and hunger, the UN has warned, adding that the aid coming in amounts to \u201cnothing more than crumbs.\u201d <\/p>\n
Israel ordered the \u201ccomplete siege\u201d of Gaza in the wake of Hamas\u2019 October 7 terror attack that killed more than 1,400 people and saw some 200 people taken to Gaza as hostages. Frequent air strikes and a blockade of\u00a0life-saving fuel have sparked increasingly dire warnings for the 2 million people trapped in the enclave. <\/p>\n
\u201cFood and water are running out. The streets of Gaza have started overflowing with sewage. Gaza is on the brink of a massive health hazard as the risks of diseases are looming,\u201d said\u00a0Phillipe Lazzarini, the head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). <\/p>\n
\u201cThe last remaining public services are collapsing, our aid operation is crumbling and for the first time ever, [our staff] report that people are now hungry.\u201d <\/p>\n
Some aid trucks have been able to enter Gaza through Egypt since the crisis began but Lazzarini said the deliveries were doing little to address the\u00a0Gazans\u2019 needs. <\/p>\n
While the initial aid deliveries have provided food, water and medicine, they have not included fuel, which the UN has said is \u201cparalyzing\u201d its aid operations.\u00a0UNRWA officials said this week that without fuel, they would be unable to collect and distribute aid that reaches Gaza, warning they would be forced to \u201cwind down\u201d their relief efforts. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe should avoid conveying the message that few trucks a day means the siege is lifted for humanitarian aid. This is not true,\u201d Lazzarini added. \u201cThe current system in place is geared to fail. What is needed is meaningful and non-interrupted aid flow.\u201d <\/p>\n
A total of 74 trucks have entered the strip since humanitarian aid transfers resumed several days ago, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Thursday. Eight more trucks were expected Friday,\u00a0the UN said, adding that previously 450 trucks were going in each day. <\/p>\n
Lazzarini criticized Israel\u2019s questioning that aid would be used solely for civilians, stressing that UNRWA has strict vetting mechanisms in place.\u00a0\u201cIt pains me that humanitarian aid, a very basic right for people, is constantly questioned while at the same time despair is live streamed under our watch,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAll our vendors and partners are vetted against the sanctions list. We give aid to those who need it most. Our convoys and their routes are notified and deconflicted,\u201d he said. \u201cUNRWA does not and will not divert any humanitarian aid into the wrong hands.\u201d <\/p>\n
A 10-person team of medical staff and experts from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) also crossed into Gaza Friday, the organization said in a statement, warning that \u201cthe humanitarian catastrophe is deepening by the hour.\u201d The ICRC said it had enough equipment to treat several thousand wounded people and enough water purification supplies to treat 50,000 liters of water. <\/p>\n
The deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza has sparked huge international concern but, nearly three weeks since the outbreak of violence, the world has so far failed to unite around a common position on the crisis. <\/p>\n
European leaders have stopped short of calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, instead appealing for humanitarian \u201cpauses\u201d to provide aid,\u00a0which have killed more than 7,000 people in Gaza since October 7, according to figures released Thursday by the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. <\/p>\n
The health ministry on Thursday published a 212-page report more than 6,000 names describes as \u201cdocumented deaths since October 7\u201d in Gaza. The ministry blamed the deaths on Israel\u2019s \u201cmilitary aggression,\u201d after Israel, along with the United States, expressed doubts about the casualty numbers being reported out of Gaza, without providing evidence that they are exaggerated. The list of 6,747 names gives the sex, age and identity card number of each of the victims. <\/p>\n
The European Union communique, released after meetings Thursday in Brussels, <\/strong>follows several failed attempts by the UN Security Council to pass a resolution on the Israel-Hamas war, with member states preparing to vote on another draft resolution \u2013 this time put forward by Jordan on behalf of Arab states \u2013 on Friday. <\/p>\n Jordan\u2019s Foreign Minister\u00a0Ayman Safadi told diplomats gathered at the United Nations Assembly Hall that \u201ccollective punishment is not self-defense.\u201d The resolution calls for a \u201ccessation of hostilities,\u201d the release of hostages, and the rejection of \u201cany attempts at forced transfer of the Palestinian civilian population.\u201d <\/p>\n Israel has rebuffed calls for a pause to the fighting, as it seeks to \u201cdestroy\u201d Hamas and prevent it from launching further attacks on Israeli soil.\u00a0Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan on Thursday said requests for a ceasefire were \u201cnot an attempt for peace,\u201d but \u201can attempt to tie Israel\u2019s hands, preventing us from eliminating a huge threat to our citizens.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cIsrael is not at war with human beings, we are at war with monsters,\u201d he added, saying, \u201cour goal is to completely eradicate Hamas\u2019s capability and we will use every means at our disposal to accomplish this.\u201d <\/p>\n His comments came as Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel\u2019s forces are preparing for the \u201cnext stages\u201d in its war against Hamas, which is widely expected to come in the form of a ground incursion. <\/p>\n \u201cThe maneuvering will begin when the conditions are right. These conditions are complex because so is the campaign. The troops are ready,\u201d Gallant said in a briefing in Tel Aviv. <\/p>\n For a second night, Israel\u2019s military conducted \u201ctargeted raids\u201d in northern Gaza overnight on Friday after\u00a0vowing to continue ground raids\u00a0over the coming days. <\/p>\n The raids included aircraft and artillery strikes in the area of Shaja\u2019iyah, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. Video published by the IDF showed tanks and armored vehicles moving on a road near agricultural land as well as strikes on buildings and open areas. <\/p>\n The incursions are intended to kill Hamas militants, lay the foundations for an all-out invasion and neutralize explosive devices and reconnaissance posts, IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Thursday. <\/p>\n