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Gaza's humanitarian crisis deepens as Israel blocks aid deliveries despite ceasefire.
A week into the fragile truce, the Israeli government continues to seal Gaza's Rafah crossing with Egypt, despite repeated international calls for large-scale aid deliveries. The United Nations has warned that progress is slow and that assistance must enter through all border crossings to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of the enclave. Under the deal to end Israel's genocide, which has claimed over 67,000 Palestinian lives in two years, Israel was supposed to allow a surge in aid deliveries.
Convoys carrying food and other essential supplies are struggling to reach famine-hit areas of northern Gaza due to bombed-out roads and the continued closure of key routes. The World Food Programme (WFP) has brought an average of 560 tonnes of food per day into Gaza since the ceasefire began, but this is still below what is needed. The UN agency said it has enough food to feed all of Gaza for three months.
The WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa stated that thousands of aid vehicles would have to enter weekly to tackle widespread malnutrition, displacement, and a collapse of infrastructure. However, the group's efforts are being hindered by the continued closure of Zikim and Beit Hanoon, with Israeli forces remaining in the north of the enclave.
The humanitarian crisis is not only affecting Gaza's residents but also its healthcare system, which is barely functioning due to the influx of patients. Global medical charity Doctors Without Borders reported that many relief agencies had not fully returned to the north, leaving hospitals unable to provide regular care.
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza have continued unabated. A recent artillery strike hit a small bus carrying a displaced family, causing several deaths and injuries. The fate of the others remains unknown due to the danger at the site as attempts to reach the area continue.
Hamas has insisted it is committed to returning the remains of captives still unaccounted for under Gaza's ruins. The group returned the body of one more Israeli late on Friday, but its armed wing said that returning more remains would require allowing heavy machinery and excavation equipment into Gaza.
The Israeli government's refusal to allow these essential items has created a challenge for the residents of Gaza who are experiencing "a clear disconnect" from what is being demanded. The rubble under which the bodies of deceased Palestinian captives lie presents an even greater obstacle, with only six out of 120 bodies formally identified so far.
As the truce continues, Hamas politburo member Mohammad Nazzal said the group intends to maintain security control in Gaza during an interim period and could not commit to disarmament. The next phases of the truce are expected to address the disarmament of Hamas, possible amnesty for its leaders who lay down their weapons, and the question of who will govern Gaza after the war.
The international community is calling on Israel to allow aid deliveries into Gaza without condition, but the Israeli government's refusal has only exacerbated the humanitarian crisis. The situation in Gaza remains dire, with thousands more awaiting medical attention and hundreds of thousands still in need of food and other essential supplies.
A week into the fragile truce, the Israeli government continues to seal Gaza's Rafah crossing with Egypt, despite repeated international calls for large-scale aid deliveries. The United Nations has warned that progress is slow and that assistance must enter through all border crossings to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of the enclave. Under the deal to end Israel's genocide, which has claimed over 67,000 Palestinian lives in two years, Israel was supposed to allow a surge in aid deliveries.
Convoys carrying food and other essential supplies are struggling to reach famine-hit areas of northern Gaza due to bombed-out roads and the continued closure of key routes. The World Food Programme (WFP) has brought an average of 560 tonnes of food per day into Gaza since the ceasefire began, but this is still below what is needed. The UN agency said it has enough food to feed all of Gaza for three months.
The WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa stated that thousands of aid vehicles would have to enter weekly to tackle widespread malnutrition, displacement, and a collapse of infrastructure. However, the group's efforts are being hindered by the continued closure of Zikim and Beit Hanoon, with Israeli forces remaining in the north of the enclave.
The humanitarian crisis is not only affecting Gaza's residents but also its healthcare system, which is barely functioning due to the influx of patients. Global medical charity Doctors Without Borders reported that many relief agencies had not fully returned to the north, leaving hospitals unable to provide regular care.
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza have continued unabated. A recent artillery strike hit a small bus carrying a displaced family, causing several deaths and injuries. The fate of the others remains unknown due to the danger at the site as attempts to reach the area continue.
Hamas has insisted it is committed to returning the remains of captives still unaccounted for under Gaza's ruins. The group returned the body of one more Israeli late on Friday, but its armed wing said that returning more remains would require allowing heavy machinery and excavation equipment into Gaza.
The Israeli government's refusal to allow these essential items has created a challenge for the residents of Gaza who are experiencing "a clear disconnect" from what is being demanded. The rubble under which the bodies of deceased Palestinian captives lie presents an even greater obstacle, with only six out of 120 bodies formally identified so far.
As the truce continues, Hamas politburo member Mohammad Nazzal said the group intends to maintain security control in Gaza during an interim period and could not commit to disarmament. The next phases of the truce are expected to address the disarmament of Hamas, possible amnesty for its leaders who lay down their weapons, and the question of who will govern Gaza after the war.
The international community is calling on Israel to allow aid deliveries into Gaza without condition, but the Israeli government's refusal has only exacerbated the humanitarian crisis. The situation in Gaza remains dire, with thousands more awaiting medical attention and hundreds of thousands still in need of food and other essential supplies.