New York - Gaza: Europe and the Arabs
The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory warned of the deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip and of a “terrifying scenario about to unfold” in the Strip, in which humanitarian operations will be unable to respond to needs.
Lynn Hastings said that the necessary conditions to deliver aid to the people of Gaza are non-existent, and that “what we are witnessing is embodied in shelter centers without capabilities, a collapsed health system, lack of clean drinking water, lack of adequate sanitation, and malnutrition, which is the formula that is studied for the conditions for the spread of epidemics.” A public health catastrophe.”
Hastings referred to reports that 700 Palestinians have been killed since the resumption of hostilities on December 1. She said that Israeli military operations extended to southern Gaza, forcing tens of thousands of Palestinians to seek refuge in areas facing increasing pressure as they despair in their quest to find food, water, shelter and safety.
Hastings, who is also the United Nations Resident Coordinator in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, said: “There is no safe place in Gaza, and there is nowhere left to go.”
The UN official stated that the quantities of humanitarian supplies and fuel that were allowed to enter the Gaza Strip are not sufficient at all. She explained that the Rafah crossing - between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, which is designated for the movement of people - alone is not sufficient to bring in cargo trucks, despite the tremendous efforts made by the Egyptian and Palestinian Red Crescent Societies, United Nations agencies and their partners.
She stressed the inability to conduct humanitarian operations with small quantities of fuel, which is the basis of social services and humanitarian operations.
She said that the space available for humanitarian response within Gaza is shrinking. She stated that the two most important roads, the coastal road and the Salah al-Din road, are now cut off for relief teams and trucks, hindering the ability to extend a helping hand to people wherever they are.
She pointed out that the truce, which lasted 7 days, led to the reunification of the hostages with their families and the entry of much-needed aid into Gaza. She stressed the need to release all hostages, introduce much larger amounts of aid, and ensure the protection of Palestinian civilians.
For his part, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israel to "avoid further measures that would exacerbate the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and spare civilians further suffering."
The UN spokesman added, in statements to the British newspaper The Guardian: “The Secretary-General reiterates the need for unimpeded and sustainable flow of humanitarian aid to meet the needs of people throughout the sector.”
He continued: "For people who have been ordered to evacuate, there is nowhere safe to go and very little to keep them alive."