Over 100 aid, rights groups call for action as hunger spreads in Gaza
In a statement signed by 111 organizations, including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Refugees International, the groups warned that mass starvation was spreading across the enclave even as tons of food, clean water, medical supplies and other items sit untouched just outside Gaza as humanitarian organizations are blocked from accessing or delivering them.
"As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families. With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes," the organizations said.
"The Government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death."
The organizations called for governments to demand that all bureaucratic and administrative restrictions be lifted, all land crossings be opened, access to everyone across Gaza to be ensured and for the rejection of military-controlled distribution and a restoration of a "principled, UN-led humanitarian response."
"States must pursue concrete measures to end the siege, such as halting the transfer of weapons and ammunition."
Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, denies it is responsible for shortages of food.
More than 800 people have been killed in recent weeks trying to reach food, mostly in mass shootings by Israeli soldiers posted near Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution centers. The foundation, backed by the United States, has been fiercely criticized by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations, for an alleged lack of neutrality.
Israeli forces have killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in airstrikes, shelling and shooting since launching their assault on Gaza in response to attacks on Israel by the Hamas group that killed 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages in October 2023.
For the first time since the war began, Palestinian officials say dozens are now also dying of hunger.
Gaza has seen its food stocks run out since Israel cut off all supplies to the territory in March and then lifted that blockade in May with new measures it says are needed to prevent aid from being diverted to militant groups.
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Al Jazeera
2 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Israel says it's distributing aid in Gaza, so why are people starving?
One hundred twenty-seven people, 85 of them children, have died from hunger or malnutrition as a result of Israel's siege of Gaza, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blocked all aid to Gaza in March, claiming that it was to pressure Hamas into accepting a ceasefire that Israel broke unilaterally later that month. This week, the Israeli government has blamed the United Nations for the situation, even accusing its aid agency of working with Hamas to restrict food from getting to people. This was not the first time Israel blocked aid from entering Gaza. In March 2024, Israel stopped UN aid convoys from reaching northern Gaza as it attempted to starve the population there into fleeing. In September, 15 international aid organisations said Israel was blocking 83 percent of Gaza's aid. In both instances, Israel denied blocking aid, blaming either UN inefficiency or Hamas for aid not reaching people in areas it has claimed to control for much of the war. So, what has Israel said, and does it accept that a man-made famine is under way in Gaza? Here's what we know. So is there no aid system in Gaza now? After receiving much criticism over the increased threat of famine that its siege had inflicted on Gaza, Israel, along with its US ally, backed the creation of the GHF in May. The GHF was intended to replace the UN and international aid agencies, which have operated some 400 aid distribution points across Gaza, with four erratically operated distribution points in Gaza's centre and south. Since May, the Israeli military and private contractors, understood to be American, have killed more than 1,000 people trying to access food at GHF distribution points. There are still some limited UN aid distribution operations, but they are so severely restricted that their effect cannot be felt. Does Israel accept that there's starvation in Gaza? It does not. On Friday, Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which is responsible for coordinating aid into Gaza, contradicted the claims of numerous aid agencies, asserting that 'there is no famine in the Gaza Strip'. However, it said, there were 'pockets' across Gaza where people had 'issues of access to food'. So Israel claims that there's enough aid being distributed? Not so much. Israel claims that shortfalls are occurring because much of the aid lies 'rotting in the sun' because the UN has not distributed it. Israel's military radio, Kan, recently reported that the Israeli army has burned or buried some 1,000 trucks' worth of aid that it deemed spoiled or expired. David Mencer, a spokesperson for Netanyahu's office, told the BBC on Friday that the UN in Gaza is a 'billion-dollar racket' and accused the UN of working with Hamas to 'restrict … aid to its own people'. Mercer did not provide any reason as to why the UN might do that, or any evidence to back his claims. Is the UN working with Hamas? Not according to the UN itself. On Wednesday, addressing the UN Security Council, Israel's ambassador, Danny Danon, accused UN aid chief, Tom Fletcher, as well as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, of somehow being affiliated with Hamas. Danon provided no evidence. Responding in writing the following day, Fletcher said, 'I expect the Israeli authorities to immediately share any evidence that led them to make such claims.' In January 2024, Israel accused another UN aid body, the UN Relief and Works Agency, of working with Hamas. An independent review into Israel's allegations concluded in April 2024 that it had provided no evidence to support its claim. Is Hamas stealing aid? Not according to Israel's military and its principal ally, the US. Citing unnamed Israeli military officials, The New York Times reported on Saturday that the UN aid operation was relatively reliable and less vulnerable to interference than others, adding that there was no evidence Hamas regularly stole from the UN. An internal report by the US's development agency, USAID, in late June also concluded that there was no evidence of the systematic looting of US-provided aid by Hamas. So far, the only evidence of aid being systematically looted points to criminal gangs now partnering with Israel and the GHF. So, why isn't aid reaching people in Gaza? Months of Israel's siege have led to the effective breakdown of Gaza's society, with food convoys at risk of being overwhelmed by starving, desperate crowds, the UN says. To deliver aid to where it is needed, the UN would need the support of the Israeli military. On Wednesday, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said half of the 16 food distribution requests submitted to the Israeli military had been refused. 'Bureaucratic … and other operational obstacles imposed by Israeli authorities; ongoing hostilities and access constraints within Gaza; and incidents of criminal looting, and more shooting incidents that have killed and injured people gathering to offload aid supplies along convoy routes' have limited efforts to deliver aid, Dujarric told reporters. What is the outcome of that? Starvation. As we noted above, 122 people, most of whom are children, have already died of starvation in Gaza. Death through hunger occurs over three stages. The first starts as early as a skipped meal; the second comes with any prolonged period of fasting when the body relies on stored fats for energy. The third, and often fatal, stage is when all stored fats have been depleted and the body turns to bone and muscle as sources of energy. It is, according to Dr Omar Abdel-Mannan, a British-Egyptian paediatrician and neurologist who has volunteered in Gaza, 'a very cruel, slow death'. Why have more children died than adults? Because their bodies are using less to do more. Children, especially infants and toddlers, have much less muscle and fat to draw on during famine, while their basic metabolism is working harder as they grow. The outcome is that they have a much-reduced buffer when food intake stops. What are the chances that Israel's siege might end? Nobody knows. Netanyahu's right-wing coalition has so far seemed immune to international outrage and internal dissent over its war on Gaza. It dismisses the accusations of engaging in crimes against humanity and disregarding international law as 'anti-Semitic' and 'blood libel'. In the minds of most analysts, the only power with the influence capable of restraining Israel in Gaza and the region is US President Donald Trump. However, predicting how the notoriously mercurial US president may behave is generally regarded as a job beyond the abilities of most analysts.
Qatar Tribune
16 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Qatar reaffirms its rejection of using food, starvation of civilians as weapon of war
The State of Qatar has reiterated its rejection of the use of food and the starvation of civilians as a weapon of war, calling on the international community to compel Israel to allow the safe, sustained, and unobstructed entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, to be distributed by international humanitarian organizations. This came in a statement delivered by Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations HE Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani during the UN Security Council's quarterly open debate on 'The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question' (MEPQ), held at UN Headquarters in New York. She emphasized that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is beyond description, amid widespread famine, the collapse of infrastructure and the healthcare system, the spread of disease, and a death toll surpassing 58,000, including nearly 18,000 children. She affirmed the State of Qatar's strong condemnation of Israel's ongoing attacks on civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools, and residential areas, stressing that the forced displacement of Palestinians in any form constitutes a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. Sheikha Alya also stated that Qatar has made sincere efforts, in coordination with Egypt and the United States, to reach a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. She noted that past diplomatic efforts had yielded tangible results through previously reached agreements, and that current mediation efforts are ongoing to bridge the gap between the parties and secure an urgent agreement. She further condemned the statements made by Israel's Minister of Justice regarding the annexation of the West Bank, describing them as a continuation of illegal settlement policies and a flagrant violation of international law and UN Security Council Resolution 2334. She also denounced the approval of new settlement construction, and the attacks carried out by settlers as part of an ongoing series of crimes against the unarmed Palestinian population. She called for urgent international action to protect civilians and to ensure accountability for those responsible. She conveyed Qatar's condemnation of attempts by the Israeli occupation to alter the religious and historical status of holy sites, including the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli officials and settlers, the closure of the Jerusalem Fund, and the transfer of authority over Al Ibrahimi Mosque to a Jewish religious council. She said Qatar warned of the risks of regional spillover due to the conflict and condemned Israel's attacks on Syria, reaffirming its support for the Syrian Arab Republic's sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity, and the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people for stability and development. She also reaffirmed the State of Qatar's principled and unwavering support for Lebanon, its unity and territorial integrity, and called for the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from all Lebanese territory, urging all parties to uphold the ceasefire agreement. She expressed the State of Qatar's welcome of the upcoming United Nations High-Level International Conference on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution to be co-chaired next week by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the French Republic. Qatar hopes the conference will yield tangible results and clear international commitments, serving as a foundational step toward full UN membership for the State of Palestine. Sheikha Alya concluded by reaffirming Qatar's principled and consistent stance in support of a just and sustainable solution to the Palestinian issue, based on international legitimacy and ensuring the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, foremost among them, the establishment of an independent Palestinian state along the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. She stressed that Qatar will spare no effort in facilitating and supporting efforts toward achieving this goal.
Qatar Tribune
18 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Qatar, Arab League, OIC and 9 countries condemn Knesset's approval of bill to impose 'Israeli sovereignty' over occupied West Bank
The State of Qatar, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Republic of Indonesia, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the State of Palestine, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates, the Arab League, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemn, in the strongest terms, the Israeli Knesset's approval of the declaration calling for imposing the so-called "Israeli sovereignty" over the occupied West Bank. They consider the move a flagrant and unacceptable violation of international law and a flagrant violation of relevant Security Council resolutions, most notably resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and 2334 (2016), which all affirm the invalidity of all measures and decisions aimed at legitimizing the occupation, including settlement activities in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967. The mentioned parties reiterate that Israel has no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory and affirm that this unilateral Israeli action has no legal effect and cannot change the legal status of the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly East Jerusalem, which remains an integral part of that territory. They also emphasize that such Israeli measures will only fuel the growing tension in the region, exacerbated by the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and the resulting humanitarian catastrophe. These parties call on the international community, including the Security Council and all concerned parties, to assume their legal and moral responsibilities and take urgent action to halt illegal Israeli policies aimed at imposing a 'fait accompli' by force, undermining the chances of achieving a just and lasting peace, and eliminating the prospects for a two-state solution. The parties also renew their commitment to the two-state solution based on international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, and the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967, lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
