GAZA, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) — The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) warned on Wednesday that food insecurity in the northern Gaza Strip has reached an “extremely critical state” due to restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid Help.
The agency said in a news release that Israeli authorities have denied access to 51 percent of missions planned by UNRWA and other humanitarian institutions to provide aid and conduct investigations in the northern Gaza Strip this year.
The number of trucks entering the Gaza Strip is well below the target of 500 daily and there are major difficulties transporting aid through the Kerem Shalom and Rafah border crossings, he added.
UNRWA added that the lives of around 400,000 people in the northern Gaza Strip were threatened by hunger and called on international institutions to increase their assistance, particularly to areas in the northern part of the enclave.
In addition, the Hamas government's media office in Gaza on Tuesday called on the World Food Program (WFP) to reverse its decision to suspend the delivery of food aid to the northern Gaza Strip.
The office said in a news release that it believes the decision amounts to “sentencing 75 percent of a million people to death and exponentially further deteriorating the humanitarian situation.”
The WFP said in a statement on the social media platform on Tuesday which people we want to reach.
The organization said the decision “was not taken lightly,” adding that “safety and security must be ensured for the delivery of critical food aid and for the people who receive it.” End