New Delhi: The renewed fighting in Gaza will “only intensify the catastrophic hunger crisis that already threatens to overwhelm the civilian population,” the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday (December 5).
In a statement, it said that the distribution of food aid, which it said was the sole lifeline for Gaza’s over two-million-strong civilian population, has become “almost impossible” following the resumption of hostilities between Israel and Hamas on Friday (December 1).
The WFP lamented the loss of progress made in humanitarian aid work during the seven-day-long ceasefire that ended on Friday.
“In that time, we were able to double the number of distribution points outside shelters and deliver food in places that had been impossible to reach, including in some northern areas. WFP reached approximately 250,000 people in just one week,” its statement said.
“Tragically, this desperately needed progress is now being lost. The renewed fighting makes the distribution of aid almost impossible and endangers the lives of humanitarian workers.
“Above all, it is a disaster for the civilian population of Gaza, more than 2 million people, whose only lifeline is food assistance,” the WFP added.
It reiterated the need for humanitarian workers to have safe and uninterrupted access to the Gaza strip and urged for a ceasefire, as well as for all leaders to work toward a political solution that would “end the suffering of families on all sides of this harrowing conflict”.
The statement is reproduced in full at the end of this article.
Food security issues are not new to the beleaguered Palestinian territory.
Three out of four Gazans relied on emergency food assistance as of January this year, well before hostilities began on October 7, the WFP had said.
The war has made things worse and the WFP pointed out that the risk of starvation remained even during the precious seven-day ceasefire.
According to Hamas’s media office, 16,248 people, including 7,112 children and 4,885 women, were killed in Gaza by Israel’s military between October 7 and Tuesday (December 6), Reuters reported, adding that Hamas’s health ministry was yet to verify the figures.
Israel’s military has begun an offensive in southern Gaza’s main city, Khan Younis, describing Tuesday as the “most intense day” since it began ground operations, Reuters quoted an Israeli military commander as saying.
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Statement by the World Food Programme on growing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza
ROME – The resumption of hostilities in Gaza will only intensify the catastrophic hunger crisis that already threatens to overwhelm the civilian population.
The seven-day pause in fighting allowed the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and our partners some safety to scale up relief operations. In that time, we were able to double the number of distribution points outside shelters and deliver food in places that had been impossible to reach, including in some northern areas. WFP reached approximately 250,000 people in just one week.
Tragically, this desperately needed progress is now being lost. The renewed fighting makes the distribution of aid almost impossible and endangers the lives of humanitarian workers. Above all, it is a disaster for the civilian population of Gaza, more than 2 million people, whose only lifeline is food assistance.
Humanitarians must have safe, unimpeded, and sustained access, so we are able to distribute life-saving assistance throughout the territory. All parties must uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law.
But only a lasting peace can end the suffering and avert the looming humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. WFP calls for a humanitarian ceasefire and urges all leaders to work with the utmost urgency to find political solutions that can end the suffering of families on all sides of this harrowing conflict.
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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.
