WFP warns of 'high risk' of famine in Gaza
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UNICEF Spokesperson James Elder says that although the aid was the "right type", the aid for a population like Gaza's was "not even enough for triage."
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A WFP aid worker with Palestinian women baking pies (WFP/Mostsfa Ghroz)
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday that Gaza's population, particularly women and children, faces starvation if humanitarian food supplies are not maintained
The WFP said it had provided food to 121,161 individuals in Gaza since Friday when a truce was agreed upon. It has since been extended for another two days.
"Thanks to the pause, our teams have been in action on the ground, going into areas we haven't reached for a long time. What we see is catastrophic," the UN organization said.
Earlier, the executive director of the WFP, Cindy McCain, warned that the people of Gaza are face to face with starvation as water and food are “practically non-existent”.
WFP's director for the Middle East, Corinne Fleischer, expressed that the things being seen by the organization are "catastrophic", emphasizing that the pause has allowed the teams to go "into areas we haven't reached for a long time."
The organization warned that it was "highly likely that the population of Gaza, especially women and children, are at high risk of famine if WFP is not able to provide continued access to food," noting that six days were not sufficient for "any meaningful impact" and urging uninterrupted flow of supplies into the Strip.
Aid entering Gaza 'not even enough for triage': UNICEF
The United Nations hailed the increase in assistance delivery into Gaza made possible by the brief truce but cautioned that it was insufficient to even begin to address Gaza's vast needs.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Spokesperson James Elder told a press briefing that although the aid was the "right type" of "fuel, medicines, food, warmth," he cautioned that the entirety of the aid for a population like Gaza's was "not even enough for triage" and urged that the aid needed to multiply.
The World Health Organization's Margaret Harris concurred, detailing that the amount of aid was "a trickle still."
Elder also commented on the "heartbreaking" opportunity for Gazans to look for their loved ones during the truce, expressing that the truce needed to morph into a permanent ceasefire.
"It would be callous and cold to think we could turn around and start destroying homes and children and families' lives again."
Elder remarked that if the war on Gaza resumed, so would the "mass killing of children," calling it a "dark stain on everyone's conscience."
The WHO has repeatedly warned of the fast spread of infectious diseases in the Gaza Strip as a result of the Israeli aggression that has disrupted health, water, and sanitation systems.
It included intense overcrowding as another reason for "the rapid spread of infectious diseases," warning that "worrying trends are already emerging."
