Gaza - New York: Europe and the Arabs
The United States of America used its veto in the UN Security Council against a draft resolution submitted by Algeria calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza for humanitarian reasons. The draft resolution received the support of 13 members - out of the fifteen members of the Council - while the United States of America opposed it and the United Kingdom abstained from voting.
The draft resolution rejected the forced displacement of the Palestinian civilian population, and reiterated the call on all parties to comply with their obligations under international law. It demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
The project renewed its call for full, rapid, safe and unhindered access of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and all its parts, and to provide sufficient humanitarian aid urgently, continuously, and in the appropriate size, to Palestinian civilians.
This comes as the United Nations daily news bulletin reported that, citing the Ministry of Health in Gaza, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that 103 Palestinians were killed and 142 others injured between February 19 and 20, as a result of the continued intense Israeli bombardment, by air and land. And by sea, in most parts of the Gaza Strip.
In total, nearly 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 70,000 have been injured since 7 October 2023, with up to 1.7 million people displaced across the Gaza Strip, many of whom have been displaced multiple times.
The UN office noted continued reports of large-scale ground operations and violent battles between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups, especially in Gaza City, Khan Yunis and Deir al-Balah, which led to more civilian casualties, displacement and destruction of civilian infrastructure, according to reports.
In a related context, Jamie McGoldrick, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, concluded his visit to Gaza on Tuesday, where he visited the Kerem Shalom and Rafah crossings, and personally examined the challenges facing the delivery of more humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, according to what the spokesman announced. On behalf of the United Nations, Stephane Dujarric, in the press conference, yesterday, Tuesday.
For its part, the World Food Program said that it decided to temporarily suspend the delivery of life-saving food aid to northern Gaza until conditions exist that allow safe distribution.
The program explained in a statement issued yesterday, Tuesday, that the decision to suspend the delivery of aid to the northern Gaza Strip “was not taken lightly, because we know that it means that the situation there will deteriorate further and that more people face the risk of dying from hunger.”
The program stressed that it is strongly committed to urgently reaching desperate people throughout Gaza, but must ensure the safety and security necessary to provide vital food aid, and to the people who receive it.
He pointed out that deliveries resumed last Sunday after a three-week hiatus following the raid on a truck belonging to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and due to the lack of an effective system for humanitarian notifications.
According to the World Food Programme, the plan was to send 10 truckloads of food for seven consecutive days, to help stem the tide of hunger and despair, and begin to build confidence in local communities that there will be enough food for everyone.
When the WFP convoy began heading towards Gaza City, it was surrounded by crowds of hungry people near the Wadi Gaza checkpoint.
The statement added, "At first, we repelled several attempts by people trying to board our trucks, then we faced gunfire as soon as we entered Gaza City, and our team was able to distribute a small amount of food along the way."
The program also reported that the second convoy's journey, which was heading north on Monday, faced complete chaos and violence due to the collapse of civil order. Several trucks were looted between Khan Yunis and Deir al-Balah, and a truck driver was beaten. The remaining flour was distributed spontaneously from trucks in Gaza City, amid intense tension and explosive anger.
Death due to hunger
The World Food Program referred to the “Integrated Interim Classification” report issued last December and prepared by 15 agencies, including the World Food Programme, which warned of the risk of famine in northern Gaza by May unless conditions there improve decisively.
The WFP said that at the end of last January, after food supplies were delivered to the north, “we reported a rapid deterioration in conditions. In these past two days, our teams experienced unprecedented levels of desperation.”
He explained that the latest reports confirm Gaza's sharp slide towards hunger and disease, adding that food and potable water have become incredibly scarce, and diseases have spread, endangering the nutrition and immunity of women and children and leading to a wave of acute malnutrition.
"People are already dying from hunger-related causes," the program said
The World Food Program confirmed that it will seek ways to resume deliveries in a responsible manner as soon as possible.