Gaza humanitarian work on 'verge of total collapse' - Red Cross

GENEVA — The Red Cross warned Friday that the humanitarian response in Gaza was on the "verge of total collapse" after two months of Israel blocking aid to the war-torn Palestinian territory.

 

"Without an immediate resumption of aid deliveries, the International Committee of the Red Cross [ICRC] will not have access to the food, medicines, and life-saving supplies needed to sustain many of its programmes in Gaza," it said in a statement.

 

Israel strictly controls all inflows of international aid vital for the 2.4 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

 

It halted aid deliveries to Gaza on March 2, days before the collapse of a ceasefire that had significantly reduced hostilities after 15 months of war.

 

Since the start of the blockade, the United Nations has repeatedly warned of the humanitarian catastrophe on the ground, with famine again looming.

 

"Civilians in Gaza are facing an overwhelming daily struggle to survive the dangers of hostilities, cope with relentless displacement, and endure the consequences of being deprived of urgent humanitarian assistance," Pascal Hundt, ICRC Deputy Director of Operations said in Friday's statement.

 

"This situation must not, and cannot, be allowed to escalate further."

 

ICRC stressed that under international humanitarian law, "Israel has an obligation to use all means available to ensure that the basic needs of the civilian population under its control are met". 

 

"If the blockage continues, programmes such as the ICRC common kitchens , which often provide the only meal people receive each day , will only be able to operate for a few more weeks," it warned. 

 

The UN's World Food Programme [WFP] said a week ago that it had sent out its "last remaining food stocks" to kitchens.

 

ICRC cautioned that the field hospital it runs in Gaza was also "running dangerously low on food and medical supplies, with some essential medicines and consumables already exhausted".

 

"Disruption to water systems, including the closure of water pipelines and destruction of critical sewage trucks, has created an unacceptably high risk of waterborne diseases," it said.

 

This dire situation was compounded by repeated attacks impacting the work of healthcare facilities and personnel, ICRC said.

 

It highlighted the killing last month of 15 humanitarians and medical workers, including eight from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, and vast damage to hospitals in recent weeks, warning this "has further crippled Gaza's collapsing health system". 

 

"International humanitarian law is clear: medical personnel and facilities must be respected and protected in all circumstances," ICRC said.

 

"Aid must be allowed to enter Gaza. Hostages must be released. Civilians must be protected," it said.

 

"Without immediate action, Gaza will descend further into chaos that humanitarian efforts will not be able to mitigate.”