New York - Rafah, Egypt: Europe and the Arabs
From in front of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the World Food Programme, launched an urgent appeal to expand humanitarian access to Gaza as humanitarian needs increase dramatically, and vital food supplies reach dangerously low levels.
The program stated - in a press statement - that the humanitarian aid that entered Gaza in recent weeks through the Rafah crossing, which has become the only entry point into the Strip, is not at all sufficient to meet the rapidly increasing needs.
“Right now, parents in Gaza don’t know if they can feed their children today and they don’t even know if they will live for tomorrow,” McCain said. “There is unimaginable suffering just meters away on the other side of the border. Today, I am making an urgent appeal to save millions.” "People whose lives have been destroyed by this crisis."
According to the statement, McCain will conclude a two-day visit to Egypt, during which she met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and senior government officials, and also visited the Egyptian Red Crescent in Al-Arish.
Regarding the aid entry operations, McCain said: “We appreciate all the efforts made to facilitate the continuous flow of humanitarian supplies across the border with Gaza, and the work of the Egyptian Red Crescent is distinguished. We need to continue working together for safe and sustainable access to Gaza at a level commensurate with the catastrophic conditions that families face.” there".
McCain stressed that the crisis in Gaza is not just a local tragedy, but rather a stark reminder that the global food crisis is worsening. She said that this crisis not only threatens regional peace and stability, but also undermines our collective efforts to combat hunger around the world.
The World Food Program is expanding its efforts to reach more than one million people with urgent food assistance in the next few weeks. More than 650,000 people in Gaza and the West Bank have received food and cash assistance from the World Food Program since October 7.
Every day, the program distributes ready-to-use food to families in United Nations shelters, and also distributes food parcels to displaced families in host communities. It continues to provide cash transfers to residents outside shelters so they can buy food available in stores that remain open.