Latest news with #exhaustion
Irish Times
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
‘Without immediate intervention, the last reporters in Gaza will die': News agency staff warn journalists face starvation
Staff at an international news agency have warned that its reporters in Gaza are facing imminent death from starvation and exhaustion. The statement from AFP's Société des Journalistes marks the first time in the agency's 80-year history that a humanitarian alert has been issued on behalf of its own journalists. The warning from the staff union comes at a time when malnutrition and starvation are killing Palestinians faster than at any point in the 21-month war, according to local health officials. A total of 33 people, including 12 children, have died in the past 48 hours from malnutrition, according to the Gaza health ministry. AFP's Société des Journalistes (SDJ) said that since the withdrawal of AFP staff journalists from Gaza in 2024, the agency has relied on a team of freelancers – one text reporter, three photographers and six video journalists – to report from inside the besieged territory. READ MORE 'Along with a few others, they are now the only ones reporting what is happening in the Gaza Strip. The international press has been banned from entering this territory for almost two years,' the statement notes. 'We refuse to see them die.' It draws particular attention to Bashar, a 30-year-old photojournalist who has worked with AFP since 2010. 'On Saturday 19th July, he posted a message on Facebook: 'I no longer have the strength to work for the media. My body is thin and I can't work any more.'' It said Bashar lives with his family in the ruins of their home in Gaza City, moving between camps in search of safety. 'On Sunday morning, he reported that his eldest brother had 'fallen, because of hunger'.' Though these journalists receive monthly payments from AFP, it said the economic collapse inside Gaza has rendered salaries 'nearly useless'. 'Even if these journalists receive a monthly salary from AFP, there is nothing to buy, or else at totally exorbitant prices. The banking system has disappeared, and those who exchange money between online bank accounts and cash take a commission of almost 40 per cent.' Transport, it says, has become nearly impossible and extremely dangerous. 'AFP can no longer use its vehicle, let alone procure petrol to fuel it and transport its journalists for their reporting. In any case, travelling by car would make them a target for the Israeli air force. AFP reporters therefore travel on foot or by donkey cart.' Ahlam, another AFP journalist, continues to report from the south of Gaza, according to the statement. [ 'Famine is spreading and people are dying': UN urges Israel to allow fuel into Gaza Opens in new window ] 'And she wants to 'bear witness' for as long as possible. 'Every time I leave the tent to cover an event, do an interview or document something, I don't know if I'll come back alive.'' ''The biggest problem,' she confirms, 'is the lack of food and water.'' According to the SDJ, the situation for these journalists is deteriorating by the day. 'They are young and losing their strength. Most of them no longer have the physical capacity to travel around the enclave to do their job. Their heart-rending cries for help are now a daily occurrence. 'Over the last few days, we have learned from their brief messages that their lives are hanging by a thread and that the courage they have shown for months to bring news to the world will not be enough to pull them through. 'The idea that we could hear of their passing at any time is unbearable to us. On Sunday, Bashar wrote: 'For the first time, I feel defeated.' Later that day, he told one of us that he was grateful to him 'for explaining what we go through every day between death and hunger'. 'Ahlam is still standing. 'I'm trying to continue doing my job, to carry the voice of the people, to document the truth in the face of all the attempts to silence it. Here, resisting is not a choice – it's a necessity.'' The SDJ said the crisis was without precedent in the agency's history. 'Since AFP was founded in August 1944, some of our journalists were killed in conflict, others were wounded or made prisoner, but there is no record of us ever having had to watch our colleagues starving to death.' AFP management said it shared the SDJ's concerns. 'Since October 7th, Israel has blocked access to the Gaza Strip for all international journalists. In this context, the work of our Palestinian freelancers is crucial to informing the world,' it said in a statement. 'But their lives are in danger, so we urge the Israeli authorities to allow them to evacuate immediately along with their families.'
LBCI
19 hours ago
- Health
- LBCI
UNRWA: Agency staff and doctors are fainting from hunger in Gaza
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Tuesday that the agency's staff, doctors, and humanitarian workers are fainting while performing their duties due to hunger and exhaustion. In a statement relayed by his spokesperson during a press conference in Geneva, Lazzarini said: 'Caregivers, including our colleagues at UNRWA in Gaza, are in urgent need of medical attention. Doctors, nurses, journalists, and humanitarian workers — including UNRWA staff — are suffering from hunger. Many of them are experiencing hunger and exhaustion as they carry out their duties.' Reuters
CNA
20 hours ago
- Health
- CNA
UN Palestinian refugee staff and doctors fainting from hunger in Gaza, says UNRWA
GENEVA: The head of the UN Palestinian Refugee Agency said on Tuesday (Jun 22) that its staff, as well as doctors and humanitarian workers, were fainting on duty in Gaza due to hunger and exhaustion. UNRWA said it had received dozens of emergency messages from its staff describing grave conditions and exhaustion in the enclave, where Israel has been fighting a war against Hamas since October, 2023. "No one is spared - caretakers in Gaza are also in need of care. Doctors, nurses, journalists and humanitarians are hungry," UNRWA commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement, shared by his spokesperson at a press briefing in Geneva. "Many are now fainting due to hunger and exhaustion while performing their duties - reporting atrocities or alleviating some of the suffering." Lazzarini also criticised a US-backed aid distribution scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that has been supplying aid since late May, when Israel, which controls supplies into Gaza, lifted an 11-week blockade. "The so called 'GHF' distribution scheme is a sadistic death trap. Snipers open fire randomly on crowds as if they are given a licence to kill," Lazzarini said. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies and largely bypasses a UN-led system, that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the allegation. More than 1,000 people have been reported killed while trying to receive food aid since the end of May, according to UNRWA estimates, Lazzarini said. The UN said on Jul 15 it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks at aid points in Gaza run by the GHF and convoys run by other relief groups. The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of GHF sites, while the remaining 201 were killed on the routes of other aid convoys. The Israeli Foreign Ministry, GHF and COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, were not immediately available for comment. GHF has previously told Reuters that such incidents have not occurred on its sites and accused the UN of misinformation, which it denies.
Reuters
21 hours ago
- Health
- Reuters
UN Palestinian refugee staff and doctors fainting from hunger in Gaza, says UNRWA
GENEVA, July 22 (Reuters) - The head of the U.N. Palestinian Refugee Agency said on Tuesday that its staff, as well as doctors and humanitarian workers, were fainting on duty in Gaza due to hunger and exhaustion. UNRWA said it had received dozens of emergency messages from its staff describing grave conditions and exhaustion in the enclave, where Israel has been fighting a war against Hamas since October, 2023. "No one is spared: caretakers in Gaza are also in need of care. Doctors, nurses, journalists and humanitarians are hungry," UNRWA commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement, shared by his spokesperson at a press briefing in Geneva. "Many are now fainting due to hunger and exhaustion while performing their duties: reporting atrocities or alleviating some of the suffering." Lazzarini also criticised a U.S.-backed aid distribution scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that has been supplying aid since late May, when Israel, which controls supplies into Gaza, lifted an 11-week blockade. "The so called 'GHF' distribution scheme is a sadistic death trap. Snipers open fire randomly on crowds as if they are given a licence to kill," Lazzarini said. The GHF uses private U.S. security and logistics companies and largely bypasses a U.N.-led system, that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the allegation. More than 1,000 people have been reported killed while trying to receive food aid since the end of May, according to UNRWA estimates, Lazzarini said. The U.N. said on July 15 it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks at aid points in Gaza run by the GHF and convoys run by other relief groups. The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of GHF sites, while the remaining 201 were killed on the routes of other aid convoys. The Israeli Foreign Ministry, GHF and COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, were not immediately available for comment. GHF has previously told Reuters that such incidents have not occurred on its sites and accused the U.N. of misinformation, which it denies.
RNZ News
21 hours ago
- Health
- RNZ News
UN Palestinian refugee staff and doctors fainting from hunger in Gaza, says UNRWA
By Olivia Le Poidevin , Reuters Photo: The head of the UN Palestinian Refugee Agency says staff, as well as doctors and humanitarian workers, are fainting on duty in Gaza due to hunger and exhaustion. UNRWA said it had received dozens of emergency messages from its staff describing grave conditions and exhaustion in the enclave, where Israel has been fighting a war against Hamas since October, 2023. "No one is spared: caretakers in Gaza are also in need of care. Doctors, nurses, journalists and humanitarians are hungry," UNRWA commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement, shared by his spokesperson at a press briefing in Geneva. "Many are now fainting due to hunger and exhaustion while performing their duties: reporting atrocities or alleviating some of the suffering." Lazzarini also criticised a US-backed aid distribution scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that has been supplying aid since late May, when Israel, which controls supplies into Gaza, lifted an 11-week blockade. "The so called 'GHF' distribution scheme is a sadistic death trap. Snipers open fire randomly on crowds as if they are given a licence to kill," Lazzarini said. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies and largely bypasses a UN-led system, that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the allegation. More than 1000 people have been reported killed while trying to receive food aid since the end of May, according to UNRWA estimates, Lazzarini said. The UN said on 15 July it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks at aid points in Gaza run by the GHF and convoys run by other relief groups. The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of GHF sites, while the remaining 201 were killed on the routes of other aid convoys. The Israeli Foreign Ministry, GHF and COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, were not immediately available for comment. GHF has previously told Reuters that such incidents have not occurred on its sites and accused the UN of misinformation, which it denies. - Reuters
