UNRWA Calls Israel’s Starvation Policy in Gaza An Expression of Absolute Cruelty
“It has been over 9 weeks of siege on Gaza, with … Israel banning the entry of all humanitarian aid, medical, and commercial supplies,” said the agency in a statement on Sunday.
“The longer this blockade continues, the more irreversible harm is being done to countless lives," it stressed.
The agency noted that the “UNRWA has thousands of trucks ready to enter and our teams in Gaza are ready to scale up the delivery.”
It stated that “the man made and politically motivated starvation in Gaza is an expression of absolute cruelty.”
Last Monday, the Gaza Health Ministry reported the deaths of 57 children due to malnutrition and related complications, amid severe shortages of therapeutic milk, particularly for children with special needs.
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The blockade follows the collapse of the first phase of a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and the Israeli regime that began on Jan. 19.
Israel resumed its onslaught on Jan. 19 and fully barred aid entry on March 2, cutting off critical food, medical, and relief supplies for Gaza’s 2.4 million residents.
On Friday, the UN warned that Israel is using aid as “bait” to pressure Palestinians to flee from northern Gaza to the south, dismissing claims of failures in distribution.
On May 5, Israel’s Security Cabinet approved the entry of limited aid to Rafah in southern Gaza under military protection as part of a broader operation to displace Palestinians from northern and central areas.
More than 52,800 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
Source: Anadolu Agency
