UN urges end to Gaza fighting to allow aid deliveries
A senior United Nations official said on Wednesday that it is crucial that the fighting stops in the battered Gaza Strip and that food and fuel be delivered rapidly.
"Conditions for parents and children in Gaza are dangerous and frightening. We are in a life or death situation for many people today," UN humanitarian coordinator Maxwell Gaylard said in a statement.
"It is absolutely crucial that there is an end to the fighting," he said, warning that more civilians will otherwise die in the impoverished Palestinian enclave.
"Without the violence stopping, it is extremely difficult to get food to people who need it. We cannot assess where the most urgent needs are, and it is too dangerous for civilians to leave their homes to seek urgent medical treatment, buy supplies and assist people in distress."
Israel”s assault on the densely populated and aid-dependent territory has killed at least 390 Palestinians since it was unleashed on Saturday in a bid to halt militant rocket and mortar fire.
Gaza medics say 42 children have been among the dead and that more than 1,900 people have also been wounded.
Gaylard urged Israel to open the conveyor belt at the Karni crossing to allow in urgently needed grain for distribution to 750,000 people who rely on UN food assistance inside Gaza.
"We need to get that wheat grain in now. This is a must," he said.
The CARE humanitarian agency urged Israel to immediately allow "unfettered humanitarian access" to the besieged coastal enclave.
"A vulnerable civilian population, 56 percent of whom are children under the age of 18, is now being pummelled. It is cold and pouring with rain in Gaza," the agency said in a statement.
"Gaza”s health system is at the breaking point after 19 months of blockade and is overwhelmed with casualties. Hospitals and clinics lack pharmaceuticals such as anesthetic and cleaning fluid, spare parts and basic equipment as well as electricity. The list goes on," said Martha Myers, CARE’s director for Gaza and the West Bank.
"More than 87 per cent of the patients in hospital today are in critical condition. Patients have been treated on the floor because there are not enough beds," she said.
Because of electricity shortages, hospitals have to use generators and precious stocks of fuel, forcing doctors to decide who to treat based on power consumption, CARE said.