The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is “indescribable” and the distribution of aid faces “almost insurmountable” obstacles, the head of the WHO denounced on Wednesday after months of incessant bombing by the Israeli army.
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“People are queuing for hours to get a small amount of water that may not be clean, or bread that is not nutritious enough on its own,” lamented World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a news conference in Geneva.
“Only 15 hospitals are partially functional. The lack of clean water and sanitation, as well as overcrowded housing conditions, create an ideal environment for the spread of disease,” he warned.
He reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire or at least the establishment of safe humanitarian routes that would allow aid to be more widely distributed throughout the Palestinian territory.
The north, where bombings and fighting broke out in the early weeks of the war between Israel and the Islamic movement Hamas, has been inaccessible to WHO missions since December 26. Seven missions had to be canceled because there was insufficient assurance that the convoys would be spared.
More broadly, “Delivering humanitarian assistance to Gaza continues to face almost insurmountable challenges: severe restrictions on movement due to bombings, fuel shortages and disrupted communications are preventing WHO and its partners from reaching those who need it,” said Dr. Tedros.
“We have the supplies, the teams and the plans. “What we don’t have is access,” he stressed, calling on Israel to “give permission to provide humanitarian assistance.”
The war was sparked by an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israeli soil on October 7 that left about 1,140 people dead, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on Israeli figures.
In retaliation, Israel vowed to “destroy” Hamas, which is in power in Gaza, and launched an offensive in that Palestinian territory that left at least 23,357 people dead, mostly women, youth and children, the Palestinian Authority said on Wednesday. Hamas Ministry of Health.