Humanitarian agencies warn of inadequate aid reaching Gaza weeks after ceasefire
Nearly four weeks after a ceasefire, humanitarian agencies warn that far too little aid is reaching Gaza, leaving residents exposed to hunger and deteriorating shelters.
Since mid-October, only half the required food has arrived, according to the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP), while local Palestinian agencies report overall aid at a quarter to a third of expected levels.
The UN humanitarian office, OCHA, notes that tents are fraying, fuel is scarce, and more than 60 percent of Palestinians in Gaza are cooking with burning waste.
WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa called the situation a “race against time,” highlighting the urgent needs for food, nutrition, fuel and winter shelter. “The winter months are coming. People are still suffering from hunger, and the needs are overwhelming,” she told Reuters news agency.
Shaina Low of the Norwegian Refugee Council said 1.5 million people still lack adequate shelter, with much aid delayed awaiting approvals.
Palestinians struggle with lack of nutritious food in markets
The people in Gaza currently have no money. They have spent everything they have and sold all their property to pay for trucks to help them evacuate from the north to the south. That is why they are entirely reliant on food aid and distribution points.
But the food available in the markets consists of non-essential items. We do not see eggs, white meat, or other nutritious foods for Palestinian children. Most of what is available is chocolate, crackers, and other items that are also expensive for Palestinians to afford.
Palestinians say this is not what they need.
UNICEF calls for urgent increase in aid to Gaza
Tess Ingram, the Middle East communications manager at UNICEF, the UN’s children’s agency, tells Al Jazeera that although UNICEF was able to bring aid into Gaza even prior to the ceasefire, the amount is “nowhere near enough”.
“We need to bring in more items, including those that have been banned for many, many months now, such as education kits that UNICEF wants to bring in to help children get back into school,” Ingram said.
She added that the materials rejected by Israeli authorities, who have placed Gaza under siege for much of the war, were dismissed because they are not considered “life-saving”.
“Education can be life-saving,” Ingram added, “particularly after the atrocities that children have experienced over the last two years.”
Jordan, UK officials stress urgency of Gaza humanitarian aid
Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi met with UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper on Tuesday as part of Cooper’s tour of the Middle East.
In a post on X following the meeting, Jordan’s Foreign Ministry said they “discussed regional developments and stressed the need to coordinate efforts to maintain the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, ensure the implementation of all terms of the ceasefire agreement, and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to the area”.
On Monday, in an interview with UK news outlet Channel 4, Yvette Cooper raised alarm about hold-ups in aid from a warehouse full of UK supplies intended for Gaza, saying Israel had “no excuse” not to allow it to reach people in the territory.
