Rather, Israel claims to have established a daily “humanitarian pause” in three crowded urban neighborhoods in Gaza. This decision is intended to address a deteriorating humanitarian crisis that belies the region. Right now, the Gaza Strip is in the midst of a catastrophic starvation siege. Continuing war and lack of access to food, water, and other basic resources are further complicating the crisis. This important initiative, though, is still cloaked in mystery about how long it will last and how impactful it will be.
Since May, Israel has permitted an estimated 4,500 UN aid trucks into Gaza—just about 70 per day. This influx of aid contrasts sharply with the United Nations’ assessment that 500-600 trucks daily are necessary to restore the health of Gaza’s population. Healthcare workers on the front lines are sounding an alarm that needs to be answered immediately. They provide powerful testimony about the growing epidemic of malnourishment among our patients.
The Humanitarian Situation in Gaza
Surgeons in Gaza know exactly what they are up against at this point. At the same time, they’re failing to take care of an expanding patient population. On top of this, as many as 1 in 3 patients are seeking treatment for malnutrition, which has hit crisis levels.
“Our malnutrition ward in the hospital is extremely overcrowded. Due to the large number of cases, some children are forced to sleep on the floor,” – Dr Ahmad al-Farra.
The latest spike in the starvation crisis has already followed with dozens of deaths directly associated with famine. She said the impact on civilians has been devastating, with reports saying more than 1,000 people have died trying to cross into aid. Nearly all of these fatalities occurred near food distribution points managed by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). Since early May, GHF has been the principal provider of humanitarian assistance after Israel began to allow a trickle of aid into the territory.
Israel’s strategy toward the provision of humanitarian assistance has varied over the years. After the guns fell silent again in mid-March, Israel at first prevented all aid for two and a half months. Subsequently, they brought forward the GHF as a more effective alternative to the UN’s largely dysfunctional aid system. This decision was based on allegations that Hamas was deliberately pilfering aid for civilians.
Challenges in Aid Delivery
Even with recent efforts, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached catastrophic levels. As the civilian population runs low on food, many people are literally running out of time with increased hunger-related deaths occurring each day. The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has 6,000 trucks filled with essential supplies standing by in Jordan and Egypt. How this vital aid will be distributed remains unclear.
Juliette Touma, a spokesperson for UNRWA, underscored the dire humanitarian conditions and called for the humanitarian response to be scaled up urgently.
“We have to go back to the levels we had during the ceasefire, 500-600 trucks of aid every day managed by the UN, including Unrwa, that our teams would distribute in 400 distribution points,” – Juliette Touma.
The amount of aid coming into Gaza right now is not nearly enough to meet the needs created by the current humanitarian crisis. Hospitals are at capacity, and things are starting to really get scarce. Our healthcare workers are fighting valiantly to care for a population which is becoming increasingly desperate and needy.
The Future of Humanitarian Aid
Israel still carries out these daily humanitarian pauses. Doubts linger, especially at how long they will last and their effectiveness in addressing the urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Humanitarian organizations are raising alarm for the resumption of airdropped aid. Instead, they argue that it will not provide the level of supplies necessary to make a real difference.
Yet the deepening conflict and political complications in distributing aid have only made it more difficult to respond to the growing humanitarian crisis. Every day, thousands more people succumb to hunger and malnutrition. This unfortunate reality brings to light the urgent need for whole of government approaches that put the well being of civilians first.