NEW YORK, (PIC)
The UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, affirmed on Monday that the Israeli bombing of Gaza since October 7th last year has turned the besieged enclave into a hell on earth.
Griffiths said that delivering humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip, who are on the verge of famine, is almost impossible, noting that civilians and infrastructure have suffered excessive damage, and there is politicization of aid, amidst the spread of hunger and disease. He pointed out that humanitarian workers and the United Nations in Gaza have been killed in unreasonable numbers.
The UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs explained that weapons have continued to flow to Israel from Washington and other countries, despite the horrific impact of the war on civilians in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), told journalists in Oslo on Monday that hostilities are continuing in Rafah and southern Gaza Strip, despite the Israeli occupation army’s announcement yesterday of a tactical pause in operations to allow the entry of humanitarian aid.
Lazzarini said in a press conference, “There is information that this decision has been taken, but the political level says that nothing of the sort has been done.” He added, “So at the moment, I can tell you that hostilities are continuing in Rafah and southern Gaza. Operationally, nothing has changed so far.”
The UN official later told Reuters that UNRWA, the main organization delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, had received a notification from the Israeli occupation army that there would be a pause in fighting, but it was only in English, and was quickly followed by a denial from the government. He added, “At the moment, I don’t see anything that can be described as a temporary cease-fire.”
The Israeli occupation army had earlier this week announced a daily suspension of fighting from 5:00 to 16:00 GMT in the area extending from the Karm Abu Salem crossing in the south of the Strip to the Salah El-Din Road and then northward. It later explained that its military operations would continue in Rafah.
