United Nations warns aid to Gaza ‘could grind to a halt’ within hours if Israel does not lift its blockade on fuel supplies
- Aid work in Gaza could end within hours if Israel does not lift the blockade on fuel supplies, the UN says
Aid work in Gaza will come to a standstill within hours if Israel does not lift the blockade on fuel supplies, the UN warned yesterday.
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said it would be forced to halt its operations in Gaza tonight if it could not get fuel.
Limited supplies of food, water and medicine were allowed into the Palestinian state this week after Israel agreed not to bomb humanitarian convoys. But it has refused to allow fuel into Gaza, fearing Hamas could use it.
UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma said: “If we do not receive fuel urgently, we will be forced to halt our operations in the Gaza Strip.”
She said the agency’s work would stop tonight if the fuel blockade remained in place, adding: “Time is running out.”
Rescued from the rubble: A child died yesterday from a collapsed building in southern Gaza
Egyptian volunteers yesterday provide humanitarian aid for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, at the Rafah border crossing, Egypt
About 600,000 people have taken refuge in UN emergency shelters since Israel ordered the evacuation of northern Gaza.
Hospitals have also been hit by the fuel shortage and cannot use emergency generators to power life support machines and incubators for premature babies.
Ambulances in some areas will run out of fuel within 24 hours, the World Health Organization said.
Authorities in Gaza said hospital services had “completely collapsed” due to fuel shortages and Israeli airstrikes. The Health Ministry said 12 hospitals and 32 health centers could no longer function, adding: “We fear that more hospitals will be out of service in the coming hours due to targeted actions and fuel depletion.”
It called on the international community to fuel its hospitals and send medics to help care for the wounded.
Palestinian Health Minister Mai al-Kaila called for a humanitarian corridor so that seriously ill patients can be transferred to hospitals in Egypt.
Doctors in Gaza have warned of the possible spread of diseases caused by overcrowding and poor sanitation after more than 1.4 million people fled their homes following Israeli airstrikes.
The Health Ministry said at least 5,791 Palestinians have been killed in the bombings since the start of the latest crisis, including 35 UNRWA staff.
The humanitarian aid convoy heading to the Gaza Strip is parked outside the Rafah border gate