GAZA CITY – Israel’s continued closure of Gaza’s border crossings is pushing the Palestinian enclave to an “unprecedented humanitarian disaster”, local authorities warned on Wednesday.
“For 18 months, the Israeli occupation has waged a criminal war against the Palestinian people in Gaza, employing genocide and ethnic cleansing,” Gaza’s government media office said in a statement.
It said Israel has shut down all of Gaza’s border crossings since early March, completely blocking humanitarian aid, relief supplies, and fuel shipments.
Under a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas that took hold in January, Israel was scheduled to allow 600 aid trucks and 50 fuel trucks into Gaza daily.
Israel, however, has prevented the entry of 15,000 aid trucks and 1,250 fuel trucks into Gaza since early March, the media office said.
“A humanitarian catastrophe is looming in Gaza,” it warned.
These supplies are a lifeline for Gaza’s population, whom Israeli attacks have driven into poverty, according to the World Bank data.
The media office said that more than 90% of Gaza’s 2.4 million population now lack access to clean water.
“Israel has destroyed 719 water wells and 330,000 meters of water networks since October 2023,” it said, adding that dozens of bakeries have also stopped operating due to fuel shortages and supply restrictions.
The Israeli army launched a surprise aerial campaign on the Gaza Strip on March 18, killing 830 people, injuring nearly 1,800 others, and shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.
The UN estimated that around 124,000 Palestinians have been displaced again since Israel resumed its attacks on Gaza.
Nearly 50,200 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 113,700 injured in a brutal Israeli military onslaught on Gaza since October 2023.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave. -AA