UNRWA says reaching 'breaking point' in Gaza amid risk of famine
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) says it is “very near to a possible breaking point” in the Gaza Strip, where aid is desperately needed against the threat of disease and famine.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said on Wednesday the agency is facing a combination of financial and political threats to its existence, in addition to difficulties in day-to-day operations in Gaza.
“We might reach a point that we won’t be able anymore to operate,” he said. “When will it be? I don't know. But we are very near of that.”
Lazzarini also warned that “there is a real risk today... that we enter a situation where famine or acute malnutrition is unfortunately again a likelihood.”
He said regarding a dire picture of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the besieged Palestinian territory had “become a kind of wasteland, which I would say is almost unlivable.”
In relation to aid deliveries, he said “over the last two to three weeks there was no convoy entering into the north except yesterday.”
In Gaza, health officials called for a humanitarian corridor to three hospitals in northern Gaza that have come close to collapse.
They say Israel forces have cut off the area for the past two weeks.
The military issued evacuation orders at the start of its major operation in the Jabalia area of northern Gaza 12 days ago.
However, doctors at the Kamal Adwan, al-Awda and Indonesian hospitals have refused to leave their patients.
Director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital Hussam Abu Safiya said a corridor is urgently needed towards the healthcare system to facilitate the entry of “fuel, medical, delegations, supplies and food.”
He called on the international community, the Red Cross and the World Health Organization “to play their humanitarian role.”
The Israeli military is trying to force medical personnel to evacuate the hospitals in Jabalia.
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