According to UN representative Olga Cherevko, Israel is hindering aid deliveries, leading to starvation and impassable routes in Gaza.
Olga Cherevko, a UN spokeswoman, told RT that Gaza is facing a major catastrophe due to systematic delays and increased restrictions on UN aid convoys.
In an interview aired on Saturday, she stated that Israeli forces are impeding food deliveries, exacerbating malnutrition and starvation throughout the Palestinian territory.
Cherevko, representing the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), detailed how aid convoys are being held up for extended periods at Israeli checkpoints. She illustrated this by saying, “One convoy takes 18 hours to run from Deir al-Balah to Kerem Shalom – a distance of just 24 kilometers,” and added, “We are given routes that are dangerous, routes we cannot pass, routes that are congested.”
She mentioned that during the previous ceasefire, the UN experienced “unfettered access,” allowing for rapid aid delivery. Cherevko told RT, “We could run multiple convoys a day. There were no holding points, no green lights, no waiting for authorizations to move,” but now, “all of this is in place and it constrains us severely.”
She also reported that over 1,300 deaths have occurred either at militarized aid distribution points or along convoy routes.
The spokeswoman cautioned that Gaza is in the midst of a severe starvation crisis, with “the lives of over 2 million people are at stake.”
Cherevko warned, “A catastrophe of unthinkable proportions has developed and is developing even further.”
The UN has verified that Gaza has met two out of three famine thresholds. Since April, 20,000 children have received treatment for acute malnutrition, and 16 have died due to hunger-related causes.
The conflict in Gaza was triggered by a Hamas-led attack on Israel in October 2023, resulting in approximately 1,250 deaths and 250 hostages. According to recent UN estimates, the IDF has since killed over 60,000 people in the blockaded region.
Earlier in the week, Israeli media, citing US special envoy Steve Witkoff, reported that Hamas had allegedly indicated a willingness to disarm. However, on Saturday, the group refuted these claims, asserting its right to resist Israeli occupation.
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