Latest news with #JulietteTouma
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
GHF says all aid distributions sites in Gaza closed
UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma discusses how US- and Israeli-backed group handing out aid in Gaza have said that all its distribution sites were closed until further notice, urging residents to stay away from these venues "for their safety" after a series of deadly shootings.
Channel 4
7 days ago
- Politics
- Channel 4
UNRWA: Gaza aid attack ‘a heinous crime'
We spoke to Juliette Touma, who's the Director of Communications for UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, which has been stopped from delivering aid in Gaza by Israel. We began by asking her what we have learnt from the killing of so many people who were trying to get food.
RTÉ News
29-05-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Gaza civil defence says 44 killed in Israel attacks
Juliette Touma, Spokesperson for the United Nations Agency for Palestininan Refugees (UNWRA) discusses the report that more than forty people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza.
Dubai Eye
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
Gaza humanitarian group is a 'distraction' from what is needed, UN says
The work of a US-backed private humanitarian organisation tasked with distributing aid in Gaza is a distraction from what is needed, such as the opening of crossing points, a UN spokesperson said on Tuesday. The GHF, which began as an Israeli-initiated plan and has drawn criticism from the United Nations and others, said on Monday it began distributing supplies in Gaza. This follows an Israeli blockade for 11 weeks that was only partially lifted in recent days and that prompted a famine warning from a global hunger monitor and international criticism. "We do not participate in this modality for the reasons given. It is a distraction from what is actually needed (...)," Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian office (OCHA) told a Geneva briefing, calling for the reopening of all crossings. He also called for an end to Israeli restrictions on the type of aid being allowed to enter the enclave, which he said was being "cherry picked" and did not always match needs. Israel is in charge of vetting all aid entering Gaza and regularly rejects a wide array of items it considers could be put to military use by Hamas. It says the new system is aimed at separating aid from Hamas, which it accuses of stealing and using food to impose control over the population, a charge rejected by Hamas, which says it protects aid convoys from gangs of armed looters. Juliette Touma, communications director of the UN Palestinian refugee agency, said that it had large medical shipments waiting that have been denied entry into Gaza. "We have over 3,000 trucks, not only of food, but also medicines that are lining up in places like Jordan, like Egypt, that are waiting for the green light to go in, and they're carrying medicines and that is expiring soon," she said.
RTÉ News
12-05-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Critical risk of famine for entire Gaza population, monitor says
The entire population of Gaza faces a critical risk of famine, with half a million of them facing starvation, a global hunger monitor has said, calling this a major deterioration since its last report in October. The latest assessment by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysed a period from 1 April to 10 May this year and projected the situation until the end of September, according to a summary of its key findings. Israel has sealed off Gaza since early March when it resumed its devastating military campaign against militant group Hamas following the collapse of a ceasefire deal, during which aid agencies had delivered thousands of trucks of aid. The IPC analysis found that 1.95 million people, or 93% of the population in the Israeli-blockaded Palestinian enclave, are living through high levels of acute food insecurity, including 244,000 experiencing the most severe, or "catastrophic", levels. IPC's October analysis had said 133,000 people were in the "catastrophic" category. The IPC analysis projected that 470,000 people, or 22% of the population, would fall into the catastrophic category by the end of September, with over a million more at "emergency" levels. "Urgent action is needed to save lives and avert further starvation, further deaths and a descent into famine," it said. Israeli officials have said they do not believe Gaza faces a hunger crisis, that enough aid has entered to sustain the enclave's population, and that they want to stop supplies coming under the control of Hamas. The IPC, in a brief accompanying its latest analysis, said a plan announced on 5 May by Israeli authorities for delivering aid was "estimated to be highly insufficient to meet the population's essential needs". "The proposed distribution mechanisms are likely to create significant access barriers for large segments of the population," it added. IPC analyses are produced with contributions from U.N. agencies and NGOs. The warning of famine in Gaza comes as Israeli attacks continued. At least 15 people sheltering in a school housing displaced families in Jabalia in the north of the enclave were killed in Israeli attacks overnight, local health authorities said, while at least 12 people were killed in Israeli attacks yesterday. 'Children of Gaza are starving' - UNRWA Israel has enforced a complete blockade on Gaza since 2 March leaving its 2.3 million population depending on aid supplies that have been dwindling rapidly. Director of Communications with the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees Juliette Touma said the children of Gaza are starving as the Israeli blockade of aid entered its ninth week. Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Touma said that all aid UNRWA brings into Gaza is delivered directly to those that need it and allegations of Hamas stealing the aid is just a claim. "When it comes to UNWRA, we bring aid and we deliver it directly to people in need. We have a system in place that also looks at any reports of aid diversion. "If we get reports of aid diversion, we will look into them and launch investigations. I really encourage the international media to do much, much more to get into Gaza, to look into these claims." UNICEF warned that Gaza's children face 'a growing risk of starvation' Ms Touma said: "What needs to happen right now is for the siege to be lifted for the aid to flow in. People in Gaza have been for more than 18 years dependent on aid coming from outside." She said she hopes that the release of a US hostage being held by Hamas will lead to aid being allowed into the area. The Red Cross said last week that its humanitarian response is on the verge of collapse in Gaza while its director-general said that governments must act now to stop the horrors in Gaza.
