Total blockade of Gaza to have ‘disastrous impact’: UN emergency relief coordinator

Tom Fletcher, the UN emergency relief coordinator, briefed the Security Council on the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, expressing deep distress over Israel’s total blockade since 2 March, which has cut off food, medicine, fuel, and cooking gas for 2.1 million people.
He condemned the "systematic rejection" of repeated requests to access aid at Kerem Shalom Crossing, leaving supplies to rot and expire, and described the blockade as "unconscionable" and a violation of international humanitarian law.
Fletcher warned of catastrophic consequences as essential supplies are rationed, food prices soar, and public health risks escalate due to overcrowding and poor sanitation.
He contrasted this with the 42-day ceasefire, during which aid delivery surged, hostages were released, and humanitarian operations effectively scaled up, but lamented that the return to hostilities has reversed this progress, leaving civilians in "abject fear."
Fletcher urgently called for three actions: allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, renewing the ceasefire to protect civilians and release detainees, and securing adequate funding for the humanitarian response, which is only 4% resourced.
He also raised grave concerns about settler violence and displacement in the West Bank, where 95 Palestinians, including 17 children, have been killed this year.
Closing with a poignant message from a Gaza doctor who was later killed—"Whoever stays until the end will tell the story.
We did what we could. Remember us"—Fletcher challenged the Security Council: "Will we be able to say that we did what we could?"

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Post from Al Jazeera on March 18, 2025

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