“Effective humanitarian aid will become a mere illusion if bomb attacks continue to occur, hindering deliveries and if only minimal aid is allowed,” say around twenty NGOs subscribe to this opinion forum.
Mr. Pedro Sánchez, we ask you to continue taking emergency measures to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. the only resource to defend international humanitarian law and protect people's lives.
The organizations working with the Palestinian people have joined a call to the international community: An urgent and lasting ceasefire is imperative. It is the only way to save lives, ensure the uninterrupted flow of humanitarian assistance and put an end to violations of international humanitarian law (IHL). Gaza is quickly becoming a huge cemetery, and As part of the international community, Spain has a responsibility to demand that the parties to the conflict protect the civilian population..
In Gaza, the most basic conditions for human survival are no longer present. The health system has collapsed and the few health centers and hospitals that still function are overcrowded. Exhausted medical staff tend to patients on the ground and perform surgeries without anesthesia. These places, which also accommodate displaced people in their surroundings, are constantly under attack.
The population survives on just one meal a day and consumes brackish water.. Some 1.9 million people had to move before the bombings There is no safe place to go. Women and children sleep in cars, on the streets or in precarious accommodation. There is a threat of epidemics affecting the population, which could cause even more deaths. Children, pregnant and breastfeeding women and people with disabilities bear the greatest burden in these terrible circumstances. The current conditions in Gaza are simply unsustainable.
We have already warned of the serious impact of the total blockade initiated by the Israeli government on October 9th and the resulting restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid. However, The consequences are much more devastating than we imagined.. What is unfolding before the eyes of the international community is a catastrophe that, in addition to thousands of innocent victims, will also have profound consequences for the population of Gaza.
Despite the clear guidelines of international humanitarian law, which state that wars also have rules, Gaza is a clear example of the disregard for these principles. The tragic loss of civilian lives, particularly women and minors, highlights the undeniable incompatibility between the defense of international humanitarian law and the continuation of military operations in Gaza.
The casualties and widespread destruction of neighborhoods, refugee camps, hospitals, schools and places of worship in this densely populated enclave, which was subjected to a severe blockade for 16 years, They cannot be viewed as mere collateral damage.
A lasting ceasefire is essential for the survival of 2.2 million people in the Gaza Strip. Evacuation orders from the Israeli army have forced the population of northern Gaza (1.1 million) to flee to the south, where security is virtually impossible and conditions are overcrowded and unsanitary. It is important to emphasize that nowhere in Gaza is currently safeEven the “safe zones” designated by the Israeli military remain vulnerable to attack and cannot accommodate the 1.9 million displaced people. Although the seven-day pause in late November provided some relief for the population, it did not allow humanitarian actors to adequately address immense needs or conduct thorough investigations into possible war crimes committed by either side.
We can't help under the bombs. Effective humanitarian assistance becomes an illusion when shelling continues, deliveries are hindered and only minimal assistance is provided. through a single restricted passage, while the extended Israeli siege impedes access to essential supplies such as water, food, fuel and electricity. We urgently call for the opening of all border crossings, including Kerem Shalom, to facilitate entry for both humanitarian aid and commercial goods. Hundreds of lives are lost every day, each of which could have been avoided if a ceasefire had been implemented.
In the absence of forceful diplomatic intervention to force the warring parties to a complete cessation of hostilities, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is on the verge of reaching a point of no return. We call on President Pedro Sánchez to continue to use his role as head of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union state clearly, the diplomatic influence of the Spanish state and the EU on everyone involved. This pressure is critical to uphold international humanitarian law and ensure an immediate and lasting ceasefire agreement by all parties.
SIGN:
The coordinator of the development organizations
doctors of the world
Mundubat Fundazioa
Alliance for Solidarity-ActionAid
Amnesty International Spain
Educate
Assembly for Peace Cooperation
Medicusmundi
Peace Movement, MPDL
Oxfam Intermon
Pau School of Culture of the Autonomous University of Barcelona
WILPF Spain
Spanish Peace Research Association (AIPAZ)
Let's help a children's association
Save the children
Farmamundi
Rescue NGO
Novact Institute for Nonviolence
Lafede.cat – organizing association for Justicia Global
Center Delàs d'Estudis per la Pau
Institute for Conflict Studies and Humanitarian Aid (IECAH)
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