The US envoy at the UN has warned that Israel must address the “catastrophic human situation” in Gaza as the deadline for improving the flow of aid approaches. Otherwise, American military assistance will be cut.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield stated that “Israel’s words on the ground must be matched with action.” “Right away, that’s not happening.”
The US has given their ally until the 12th of November to “surge”, with a minimum 350 lorries daily entering Gaza. The UN reports that only 10% of this number has crossed every day since then.
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador at the UN, said that Israel was “going above and beyond its humanitarian duties” and blamed Hamas.
Mr Danon also rejected the international criticism of the Israeli Parliament‘s decision to prohibit the UN agency for Palestinian Refugees (Unrwa), from working in Israel.
Israel’s allies warned that Unrwa is the largest humanitarian organization in Gaza and plays a crucial role in delivering aid to the region.
Published 19 hours ago
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In a Tuesday briefing to the UN Security Council, UN Middle East peace ambassador Tor Wennesland described a “horrific human nightmare” he witnessed during a recent trip to Gaza.
He said that the north of Palestinian territory has received almost no humanitarian aid since the beginning of October when the Israeli military launched a ground offensive against Hamas fighters in the Jabalia region. The Israeli military claimed it was to stop them from regrouping.
The operation has resulted in the deaths of scores of Palestinians. It has also caused mass displacements and forced the closure of vital services, such as water wells and hospitals.
The US ambassador said that reports of children in Jabalia going days without food made her remember a girl who died of starvation nearly three decades ago.
Ms Thomas-Greenfield stated that the Biden administration made it clear to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that Israel must address immediately the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and that the US “rejects [any Israeli efforts] to starve Palestinians anywhere else or in Jabalia”.
She added, “The US has made it clear that Israel must allow food and medicine into Gaza, especially the north and as winter approaches, and protect the workers who distribute them.”
Mr Danon told Council that Israel was “hard at work” delivering humanitarian assistance.
“The problem isn’t the flow of assistance. Hamas is the one who steals supplies and stores or sells them to fuel its terror machine, while Gaza’s civilians are ignored. Israel is committed to working with its partners to provide aid to those who are in need,” he said.
The Biden administration informed Mr Netanyahu’s government on 13 October that Israel must take concrete steps within 30 days to increase aid supplies. They cited US laws that can prohibit military aid to countries that impede the delivery of US humanitarian assistance.
The Israelis also agreed to allow a minimum 350 lorries per day through all crossings controlled by Israel with Gaza, and to end the “isolation of the north” immediately.
According to Unrwa’s external data, only 852 lorries of aid have entered Gaza this month. This compares with 3,000 lorries that crossed in September. Since the letter, 502 lorries have entered Gaza. On average, 35 lorries crossed each day between 14 October and 29 October.