Geneva, MINA – The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has issued a grave warning over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, calling it the “hungriest region on earth” due to Israel’s continued blockade and restrictions on aid deliveries, Wafa reported.
Jens Laerke, spokesperson for OCHA, stated during a press briefing in Geneva that the current level of food deliveries into Gaza amounts to a mere “drip,” describing the situation as being on the verge of catastrophic hunger.
“It is drip-feeding food into an area on the verge of catastrophic hunger,” Laerke said. “It’s not a flood.”
Although around 900 trucks have been approved to enter Gaza in the past ten days, only approximately 600 have been offloaded, and even fewer have reached those in need due to logistical obstacles and delays imposed by Israeli authorities.
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“The routes that we are being assigned to use by the Israeli authorities are very often congested, insecure, and there are significant delays in the approvals that we need,” Laerke explained.
He criticized the restrictions as creating one of the most hindered humanitarian responses in modern history.
“The aid operation that we have ready to roll is being put in an operational straitjacket,” Laerke said, adding that Israel’s control as the occupying power is a central barrier to effective aid distribution.
He also rejected Israel’s proposed alternative aid mechanism, backed by the US, known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Laerke said the plan was neither impartial, independent, nor operationally feasible.
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“Concerns about aid diversion that we have heard with no new evidence provided cannot justify shutting down a life-saving operation,” he asserted. “The UN and our partners have strict monitoring in place and we have seen no major diversion of aid under our watch.”
Laerke called for an immediate reopening of all crossings into Gaza, urging for aid to be allowed from all directions, including Jordan and Egypt. []
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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