‘Mass starvation' spreading across Gaza, warn more than 100 NGOs
Israel is facing mounting international pressure over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, where more than two million people are facing severe shortages of food and other essentials after 21 months of conflict.
On the ground, the Israeli military said it was operating in Gaza City and the north, and had hit dozens of 'terror targets' across the territory. Gaza's civil defence agency said that Israeli strikes killed 17 people overnight, including a pregnant woman in Gaza City.
A statement with 111 signatories, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Save the Children and Oxfam, warned that 'our colleagues and those we serve are wasting away'.
The groups called for an immediate negotiated ceasefire, the opening of all land crossings and the free flow of aid through UN-led mechanisms. The U.S. said its envoy Steve Witkoff will head to Europe this week for talks on Gaza and may then visit the West Asia.
The organisations said warehouses with tonnes of supplies were sitting untouched just outside the territory, and even inside, as they were blocked from delivering the goods.
'Palestinians are trapped in a cycle of hope and heartbreak, waiting for assistance and ceasefires, only to wake up to worsening conditions,' the signatories said.
'It is not just physical torment, but psychological. Survival is dangled like a mirage,' they added.
'The humanitarian system cannot run on false promises. Humanitarians cannot operate on shifting timelines or wait for political commitments that fail to deliver access.'
The head of Gaza's largest hospital said on Tuesday 21 children had died due to starvation in the Palestinian territory over the previous three days.
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