US calls UN criticism of Gaza aid effort 'height of hypocrisy'
WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday described the United Nations and non-governmental groups as hypocritical in criticizing a US- and Israeli-backed aid effort in Gaza, saying food was successfully entering the Palestinian territory.
'It is unfortunate, because the issue here is giving aid to Gaza, and then suddenly it moves into complaints about style or the nature of who's doing it,' State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters, calling the criticism 'the height of hypocrisy.'
'The real story here is that aid, and food, is moving into Gaza at a massive scale,' she said.
'When you're looking at 8,000 food boxes, was this going to be like going to the mall or through a drive-through? No, it wasn't.
'This is a complicated environment, and the story is the fact that it's working.'
Thousands of Palestinians rushed to a new aid distribution center on Tuesday, with Israeli troops firing warning shots. Just days earlier, Israel allowed food and other supplies to enter the war-ravaged territory after more than two months and as warnings grew of famine.
Non-governmental groups say the new US-supported Gaza Humanitarian Foundation lacks the expertise to handle such a serious humanitarian situation, which requires more than just giving boxes of food, and that aid distribution needs to be strictly separate from belligerents.
Bruce said that the foundation was operating 'under the humanitarian principles of independence and impartiality.'
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