Explaining during the regular briefing in New York, the deputy spokesman for the United Nations, Farhan Haq, said that even four days after the breaks announced: “We still see losses among those who asked for help and more deaths due to hunger and malnutrition.”
He added that parents “find it difficult to save their hungry children” and have warned that the current conditions for the delivery of aid are “far from sufficient”.
The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs Coordination (Ochha) said that if it uses each window available to provide supplies during unilateral breaks, the need for a need for a large thing.
“A permanent cease-fire is more than ever necessary,” said Haq, stressing that “unilateral tactical breaks alone do not allow the continuous flow of supplies necessary to meet immense levels of needs in Gaza.”
Access a major obstacle
Access remains one of the biggest obstacles.
The entrance through the Kerem Shalom / Karem Abu Salem crossing requires several layers of approval from the Israeli authorities, including a safe passage, the bombing and the literal opening of the locked doors.
“Yesterday, three facilitated missions allowed our staff to collect cargoes containing food from Kerem Shalom and crossings of Zikim and made it possible to transfer fuel to Gaza,” said Mr. Haq.
“However, the others were faced with obstacles, in particular delays in receiving the green light to move by the Israeli authorities, and you had to be canceled.”
Extreme hunger haunts children
The situation was taken up by Ricardo Pires, UnicefThe director of communication, who returned from Gaza this week.
“It’s absolutely apocalyptic,” he said UN News. “The children are injured and killed while trying to get food and help while suffering from malnutrition and hunger.”
Pires said that two of the three criteria for a famine declaration had been met, according to the Last alert of food security experts.
UNICEF and other agencies are also struggling with the collapse of basic infrastructure.
Perfect storm of suffering for children
“We are on the verge of artificial drought,” said Mr. Pires, with only 40% of the operation of water production and children turning to contaminated sources, risking deadly disease.
“Children are dehydrated. They return to contaminated water, which will make them sick, with fatal diseases or diarrhea epidemics and in some cases, even meningitis, “he added.
“It is a perfect perfect storm of suffering for children.”
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
