ShareUNITED NATIONS: The situation in Gaza is the worst since the war between Zionists and Hamas militants began 19-months ago, the United Nations said, despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries in the Palestinian enclave where famine looms. Under growing global pressure, Zionists ended an 11-week long blockade on Gaza 12 days ago, allowing limited UN-led operations to resume.
Then on Monday, a controversial new avenue for aid distribution was also launched - the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, backed by the United States and Zionist entity. “Any aid that gets into the hands of people who need it is good,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York. But, he added, the aid deliveries so far overall have had “very, very little impact.” “The catastrophic situation in Gaza is the worst since the war began,” he said.
The UN and international aid groups have refused to work with the GHF because they say it is not neutral and has a distribution model that forces the displacement of Palestinians. Zionist entity ultimately wants the UN to work through the GHF, which is using private US security and logistics companies to transport aid into Gaza for distribution by civilian teams at so-called secure distribution sites. However, Zionist entity will allow aid deliveries “for the immediate future” via both the UN and the GHF operations, Zionist UN Ambassador Danny Danon said this week. GHF said on Friday that it has so far managed to distribute more than 2.1 million meals.
The UN says that in the past 12 days it has only managed to transport some 200 truckloads of aid into Gaza, hindered by insecurity and access restrictions. It was not immediately clear how much of that aid reached those in need. It said some trucks and a World Food Program warehouse have also been looted by desperate, hungry people. UN officials have also criticized limitations on what kind of aid they can provide. “(Zionist) authorities have not allowed us to bring in a single ready-to-eat meal. The only food permitted has been flour for bakeries. Even if allowed in unlimited quantities, which it hasn’t been, it wouldn’t amount to a complete diet for anyone,” said Eri Kaneko, UN humanitarian affairs spokesperson.
Some of recipients of GHF aid said the packages include some rice, flour, canned beans, pasta, olive oil, biscuits and sugar. Under a complex process, Zionist entity inspects and clears aid shipments, which are then transported to the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom crossing. There the aid is offloaded and then reloaded on to other trucks for transport to warehouses in Gaza. Several hundred more truckloads of aid currently await UN collection from the Palestinian side of Kerem Shalom. “More aid would actually get to the people if you would collect the aid waiting for you by the crossings,” COGAT, the military aid coordination agency, said to the UN in a posting on X on Friday.
However, the UN said that on Tuesday the military denied all its requests to access Kerem Shalom to pick up the aid. And on Thursday, when 65 trucks of aid managed to leave the crossing, all but five turned back due to intense fighting. Five trucks of medical aid managed to reach the warehouses of a field hospital, but “a group of armed individuals stormed the warehouses... looting large quantities of medical equipment, supplies, medicines and nutritional supplements that was intended for malnourished children,” Dujarric said.
Ceasefire proposal
Zionist entity says it has been facilitating all aid deliveries. COGAT said this week that since the war 1.8 million tons of aid, including 1.3 million tons of food, had reached Gaza. A US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire in the conflict - accepted by Zionist entity and currently being considered by Hamas - would see humanitarian aid delivered by the United Nations, the Red Crescent and other agreed channels. During a two-month ceasefire, which ended when Zionist entity resumed its military operation in March, the UN said it got 600-700 trucks of aid a day into Gaza. It has stressed then when people know there is a steady flow of aid, the looting subsides.
Hamas threatened
Meanwhile, Zionists said Hamas must accept a hostage deal in Gaza or “be annihilated”, as US President Donald Trump announced that a ceasefire agreement was “very close”. It came amid dire conditions on the ground, with the United Nations warning that Gaza’s entire population was at risk of famine. Defense Minister I Katz said Hamas must agree to a ceasefire proposal presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff or be destroyed, after the Palestinian militant group said the deal failed to satisfy its demands. “The Hamas murderers will now be forced to choose: accept the terms of the ‘Witkoff Deal’ for the release of the hostages — or be annihilated.”
Zionist entity has repeatedly said that the destruction of Hamas was a key aim of the war. Negotiations to end nearly 20 months of war in Gaza have so far failed to achieve a breakthrough, with Zionist entity resuming operations in March following a short-lived truce. In the United States, Trump told reporters “they’re very close to an agreement on Gaza”, adding: “We’ll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow.”
Protest in Afghanistan
Meanwhile, thousands of Afghans protested across the country on Friday against the bombardment in Gaza, responding to a nationwide call by the Taleban authorities. Large crowds gathered in several cities after Friday prayers waving Palestinian flags and burning pictures of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “We are out in support with Gaza. And to show the world that Gaza is not alone, we are standing with them. Wherever Muslims are oppressed, we strongly defend them and condemn it,” said 28-year-old Jannat, who goes by one name, in the capital Kabul. Taleban Prime Minister Hassan Akhund condemned Zionist actions in Gaza, labeling them a “genocide” and expressing growing concern over the escalating violence against Palestinian civilians. — AFP
