Israel

Gaza: Airdrops and sea routes are no alternative to aid delivery by land

March 14, 2024

25 NGOs call on governments to prioritise ceasefire and ground-based humanitarian aid as deaths from malnutrition and disease rise.

Human rights and humanitarian organisations present on the ground in the Gaza Strip have reiterated since the start of the current escalation that the only way to meet the unprecedented humanitarian needs in the enclave is to secure an immediate and permanent ceasefire and to ensure full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access through all land crossings. States cannot hide behind airdrops and efforts to open a maritime corridor to create the illusion that they are doing enough to support the needs in Gaza: their primary responsibility is to prevent atrocity crimes from unfolding and apply effective political pressure to end the relentless bombardment and the restrictions which prevent the safe delivery of humanitarian aid.

For months, every person in the Gaza Strip has been surviving with crisis-level hunger, in the largest proportion of any population in food security crisis ever recorded by the Integrated Food Security and Nutrition Phase Classification (IPC). Families have been drinking unsafe water for months and spend days without eating. The health system completely collapsed amid disease outbreaks and severe injuries due to constant bombardment. At least 20 children have recently died from severe malnutrition, dehydration and related diseases. As each day witnesses an acceleration in the deterioration of the food, water and health situation, more deaths from starvation and disease are to follow if humanitarian access continues to be impeded by Israeli authorities. The UN has warned that famine is imminent.

While States have recently ramped up airdrops of aid in Gaza, humanitarian professionals stress that this method of aid delivery alone has in no way the capacity to meet the massive needs in the enclave. 2.3 million people living in a catastrophic state of survival cannot be fed and healed by airdrops.

Airdrops are unable to provide the volumes of assistance that can be transported by land. While a convoy of five trucks has the capacity to carry about 100 tons of lifesaving assistance, recent airdrops delivered only a few tons of aid each. Airdrops can also be extremely dangerous to the lives of civilians seeking aid: there have already been reports of at least 5 persons killed from free falling aid packages in Gaza. Humanitarian assistance cannot be improvised: it must be delivered by professional teams, with expertise in organising distributions and providing direct lifesaving services. Aid deliveries need to have a human face: not only to be able to properly assess the needs of affected people, but also to restore hope and dignity to an already traumatised and desperate population. After enduring five months of continuous bombardments and dehumanising conditions, children, women and men in Gaza have the right to more than meagre charity dropped from the sky. While any humanitarian aid arriving to Gaza is welcome, transportation by air or by sea should be seen as complementary to land transportation and not as a substitute as it cannot in any circumstances replace the assistance delivered by road.

It is important to note that some of the States who have recently conducted airdrops are also providing weapons to Israeli authorities, namely the US, UK and France. States cannot leverage aid to circumvent their international responsibilities and duties under international law, including the prevention of atrocity crimes. For these States to meet their international law obligations they must halt all arms transfers that risk being used in international crimes, as well as implement meaningful measures to enforce an immediate ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian access and accountability for perpetrators.

Third States recently announced efforts to open a maritime corridor from Cyprus, including the establishment of a floating port on Gaza shore that will not be fully operational before several weeks. Families are starving and do not have the time for offshore and ashore infrastructure to be constructed: saving their lives requires immediately allowing the humanitarian trucks full of food and medicine whose entry in Gaza is currently being withheld. Moreover, shipments from this dock to distribution points around Gaza will suffer from the same obstacles that aid convoys from Rafah are currently facing: persistent insecurity, high rate of access denial by Israeli forces, and excessive waits at Israeli checkpoints. Therefore, its establishment will not substantially change the humanitarian catastrophic situation, unless it is combined with an immediate ceasefire and full, unimpeded access to all areas of the Gaza Strip. There are also concerns about the lack of transparency concerning which entity will be responsible for the infrastructure and security of aid delivery ashore: States must ensure that the maritime corridor does not legitimise a prolonged Israeli ground military occupation of the strip by instrumentalising the necessity of aid delivery.

We recognise that every aid is needed in this dire context but alert on the potential devastating consequences of creating dangerous precedents leading to the degradation of humanitarian access through land and prolongation of hostilities. The appropriate humanitarian response to the massive needs in Gaza is unrestricted access for the aid and professional humanitarian personnel that have been prepositioned for months on the Egyptian side of the border. So far, the possibility for 2.3 million people in Gaza to eat, be healed, and have a roof over their head has been at the sole discretion of the Israeli authorities: this situation cannot remain unchallenged. Humanitarian organisations have the logistical capacity to provide for Palestinians in Gaza: what is missing is the political will from State actors to enforce access.

What humanitarian organisations are expecting from Third States is to urgently use their leverage towards an immediate ceasefire and to compel Israeli authorities to stop their deliberate blockade of lifesaving aid in all parts of the Gaza Strip, including through the full opening and lifting of restrictions on Rafah, Kerem Shalom / Karam Abu Salem, Erez / Beit Hanoun and Karni crossings. We recall that an immediate and permanent ceasefire is the only condition to allow for the colossal increase in the flow of humanitarian aid needed to alleviate the suffering of 2.3 million people in the Gaza Strip.

Signatories:

Action Aid International

American Friends Service Committee

Amnesty International

Association of Italian NGOs

CCFD-Terre Solidaire

CISS – Cooperazione Internazionale Sud Sud

DanChurch Aid

Danish House in Palestine

Danish Refugee Council

HelpAge International

Humanity & Inclusion – Handicap International

IM Swedish Development Partner

International Federation for Human Rights

INTERSOS

Medical Aid for Palestinians

Mennonite Central Committee

Médecins du Monde International Network / Doctors of the World

Médecins Sans Frontières France / Doctors Without Borders France

Oxfam

Plan International

Première Urgence Internationale

Secours Islamique France

Terre des Hommes Italy

War Child Alliance

Welfare Association

Rafah, Gaza: Urgent Statement from CEOs of Humanitarian & Human Rights Organisations

February 19, 2024

We are appalled by the harrowing developments in Rafah, Gaza’s most populated area where 1.5 million people are sheltering as their last resort – over half a million of them children. If Israel launches its proposed ground offensive, thousands more civilians will be killed and the current trickle of humanitarian aid risks coming to a complete halt. If this military plan is not stopped immediately, the consequences will be catastrophic.

With significant damage to over 70 per cent of civilian infrastructure, many areas in Gaza have been reduced to rubble and are uninhabitable. Most hospitals are non-functional or only partially operational and are completely overwhelmed. There is little food, clean water, shelter, or sanitation. People are living in the most inhumane conditions, many of them out in the open. It defies belief that the Israeli military has forcibly displaced the majority of the population from their homes into Rafah – with six times as many people than before now squeezed into the area – and then announced plans to attack it.

The Israeli government’s strategy of systematic and repeated forcible transfer of the civilian population has led to the forced displacement of more than three quarters of the population, many of whom left without adequate shelter or homes to return to. Collectively punishing civilians by denying them adequate shelter, food, clean water and other essentials needed for their survival and obstructing humanitarian relief consignments destined to alleviate starvation may amount to grave breaches of the obligations of an occupying power under International Humanitarian Law, constituting war crimes.

Last month, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling, mandated Israel to take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance in Gaza. Not only has this not happened, the situation on the ground has deteriorated further. Israel’s airstrikes in Rafah killed at least 100 Palestinians in a single day, defying both international calls for moderation and potentially the ICJ order. Over 1.5 million people trapped in Rafah have nowhere safe to go, and many have already been displaced multiple times. All of the Israeli supposed-safe spaces have been compromised, without exception, further proof that there was never truly anywhere safe in Gaza.

Our call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire is more urgent than ever as Israel’s relentless bombardment and siege have decimated Gaza and left the Palestinian civilian population starving, facing famine, and with diseases rife while obstructing attempts to alleviate their suffering. The Israeli military offensive has made it virtually impossible for our collective agencies to meaningfully and effectively deliver humanitarian work, compromising not only safety but also the very principles guiding our humanitarian efforts. Rafah has been the primary entry point for aid and bombardment will then prevent any assistance from getting through.

The silence, and at times material support of Israel’s military by powerful nations, signals distressing complicity in Gaza’s deepening crisis. Whether through the transfer of weapons, or diplomatic obstruction of resolutions, such actions have effectively granted Israel impunity. The harrowing situation in Gaza underscores the urgent need for governments worldwide to stop the supply of arms and ammunition used in these atrocities. We also call for a permanent ceasefire to protect civilian lives and release of hostages and unlawfully detained Palestinians, and full, unhindered access for humanitarian aid and workers.

States bear legal and moral responsibilities to protect civilians, prevent war crimes and uphold international law. We urge all States to consider that their inaction or continued support not only deepens the tragedy but also implicates them. We call upon them to do everything in their power to prevent further military offensives and forge a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire in Gaza.

SIGNATORIES

Ana Alcalde, Acting Secretary General, ActionAid International
Dr Agnès Callamard, Secretary General, Amnesty International
Faris Arouri, Director, Association for International Development Agencies (AIDA)
Charlotte Slente, Secretary General, Danish Refugee Council
Manuel Patrouillard, CEO, Handicap International-Humanity & Inclusion
Amitabh Behar, Executive Director, Oxfam International
Rob Williams, CEO, War Child Alliance

CONTACT DETAILS

Rachel Schaevitz/ Oxfam Aotearoa Communications Manager / [email protected]

Daily death rate in Gaza higher than any other major 21st Century conflict

January 15, 2024

Israeli military killing 250 Palestinians per day with many more lives at risk from hunger, disease and cold

Israel’s military is killing Palestinians at an average rate of 250 people a day which exceeds the daily death toll of any other major conflict of recent years, Oxfam said today, as the escalation of hostilities nears its 100^th day.

In addition, over 1,200 people were killed in the horrific attacks by Hamas and other armed groups in Israel on 7 October and 330 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since then.

Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East Director, said: “The scale and atrocities that Israel is visiting upon Gaza are truly shocking. For 100 days the people of Gaza have endured a living hell. Nowhere is safe and the entire population is at risk of famine.

“It is unimaginable that the international community is watching the deadliest rate of conflict of the 21^st century unfold, while continuously blocking calls for a ceasefire.”

15 January 2024 CLARIFICATION: Using publicly available data, Oxfam calculated that number of average deaths per day for Gaza is significantly higher than any recent major armed conflict including Syria (96.5 deaths per day), Sudan (51.6), Iraq (50.8), Ukraine (43.9) Afghanistan (23.8) and Yemen (15.8).

Using publicly available data, Oxfam calculated that number of average deaths per day for Gaza is significantly higher than any recent major armed conflict including Syria (96.5 deaths per day), Sudan (51.6), Iraq (50.8), Ukraine (43.9) Afghanistan (23.8) and Yemen (15.8).

The aid agency is warning that people are being increasingly forced into smaller areas due to constant bombardment, as they are forced to flee from places they have previously been told are safe, but nowhere in Gaza is truly secure. Over one million people – more than half the population – have been forced to seek shelter in Rafah on the Egyptian border. Oxfam staff in Rafah report massive overcrowding, with very little food and water, and essential medicines having run out. This crisis is further compounded by Israel’s restrictions on the entry of aid, closing borders, imposing a siege, and denying unfettered access. Currently only 10 per cent of the weekly food aid needed is getting in.

Oxfam is also warning of the massive threat to life, beyond direct casualties, from hunger and disease. The onset of cold and wet weather is making the situation even more critical, with a shortage of blankets, no fuel for heating devices and no hot water. One of Oxfam’s partner organizations, Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC), described the situation for those living in tents as “worse than anything you could imagine”, with makeshift shelters letting in rain, being blown away in the wind and people resorting to desperate measures like selling precious food or water supplies in order to get a blanket.

Mutaz, an engineer who has been displaced to Al-Mawasi with his family, said: “The rain was going down from all sides of the tent. We had to sleep lying over the bag of flour to protect it from the rain. My wife and three of my daughters use one blanket at night. There are only enough blankets for four people to share. We have nothing.”

Earlier this week, a camp in Jabaliya was flooded with sewage when pipelines and a pumping station were damaged by Israeli air strikes. The lack of clean drinking water and proper sanitation poses a huge risk to health. Cases of diarrhoea are 40 times higher than this time last year, although in reality, the number of cases is likely to be significantly higher.

Sally Abi Khalil said: “While the mass atrocities continue, lives continue to be lost and critical supplies cannot get in. Israel’s total blockade of the Gaza Strip is restricting life-saving aid, including food, medical supplies and water and sanitation facilities.

“On top of the already horrific death toll, many more people could die from hunger, preventable diseases, diarrhoea and cold. The situation is particularly worrying for children, pregnant women and those with existing medical conditions.

“The only way to stop the bloodshed and prevent many more lives being lost is for an immediate ceasefire, for hostages to be released and for crucial aid supplies to be allowed in.”

The United Nations International Court of Justice is holding a hearing today on the legality of Israel’s prolonged assault on Gaza, and may issue an emergency order for the suspension of Israel’s military campaign. Oxfam supports all efforts to investigate and address all mass atrocity crimes and human rights violations, irrespective of the perpetrator.

15 January 2024 CLARIFICATION: Oxfam calculated the daily rates of conflict-related death in these named countries, using public data from UN or academic sources, by dividing the total death toll over the period for each conflict. However, that calculation therefore does not represent the respective death rates during the heaviest period of hostilities. After further review, Oxfam is confident in restating that Gaza remains the bloodiest rate of death of any conflict in the past 24 years, but the exact figures will vary during periods of more intense conflict.

Media contact:

David Nieto, Oxfam Media & communications coordinator in Jerusalem: ‪+972 54 669 3992 / [email protected]

Notes to editors:

Figures are based on where data is available, other conflicts for which there is not data, have not been included.
Deaths per day statistics are based on civilian and combatant deaths.
According to UNOCHA, there were 23,074 reported deaths in Gaza between 7 October 23 and 7 January 24, an average of 250.8 per day and 330 deaths so far in the West Bank.
Deaths per day statistics for Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Yemen from: Human Cost of Post-9/11 Wars: Direct War Deaths in Major War Zones, Afghanistan (October 2001 – October 2019); Iraq (March 2003 – October 2019); Syria (September 2014-October 2019); Yemen (October 2002-October 2019); and Other. Neta C. Crawford and Catherine Lutz, November 13, 2019.
Sources for Ukraine statistics: UN OHCHR. Source for combatant casualties since February 2022 is https://theloop.ecpr.eu/estimating-troop-losses-on-both-sides-in-the-russia-ukraine-war/; https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukrainian-group-says-more-than-30000-troops-have-died-russias-invasion-2023-11-15/. These figures are best estimates.
Sudan figures from UNOCHA (April 15 – December 7, 2023).
According to UNRWA, over 1 million people have fled to Rafah governate.
According to the Food Security Cluster, humanitarian food assistance is only meeting 10% of the weekly need, whilst 2.2m people need food each day.
According to the Joint Humanitarian Operations Centre (JHOC) Daily Readout, January 9, 2023, the number of cases of acute watery diarrhoea in Gaza are 40 times higher than the same period last year, but expected to be higher due to the lack of data from areas without access.

Starvation as weapon of war being used against Gaza civilians

October 26, 2023

Starvation as weapon of war being used against Gaza civilians – Oxfam

Just 2 per cent of usual food delivered to Gaza since siege imposed

Starvation is being used as a weapon of war against Gaza civilians, Oxfam said today as it renewed its call for food, water, fuel and other essentials to be allowed to enter. The international agency analysed UN data and found that just 2 per cent of food that would have been delivered has entered Gaza since the total siege – which tightened the existing blockade – was imposed on 9 October; following the atrocious attacks by Hamas and the taking of Israeli civilian hostages. While a small amount of food aid has been allowed in, no commercial food imports have been delivered.

As the escalation of the conflict extends to its 19th day, a staggering 2.2 million people are now in urgent need of food. Prior to the hostilities, 104 trucks a day would deliver food to the besieged Gaza Strip, one truck every 14 minutes. Despite 62 trucks of aid being allowed to enter southern Gaza via the Rafah crossing since the weekend, only 30 contained food and in some cases, not exclusively so. This amounts to just one truck every three hours and 12 minutes since Saturday.

Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Regional Middle East Director said: “The situation is nothing short of horrific – where is humanity? Millions of civilians are being collectively punished in full view of the world, there can be no justification for using starvation as a weapon of war. World leaders cannot continue to sit back and watch, they have an obligation to act and to act now.

“Every day the situation worsens. Children are experiencing severe trauma from the constant bombardment, their drinking water is polluted or rationed and soon families may not be able to feed them too. How much more are Gazans expected to endure?”

International Humanitarian Law (IHL) strictly prohibits the use of starvation as a method of warfare and as the occupying power in Gaza, Israel is bound by IHL obligations to provide for the needs and protection of the population of Gaza. In 2018, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 2417, which unanimously condemned the use of starvation against civilians as a method of warfare and declared any denial of humanitarian access a violation of international law. Oxfam said that it is becoming painfully clear that the unfolding humanitarian situation in Gaza squarely fits the prohibition condemned in the resolution.

Clean water has now virtually run out. It’s estimated that only three litres of clean water are now available per person – the UN said that a minimum of 15 litres a day is essential for people in the most acute humanitarian emergencies as a bare minimum. Bottled water stocks are running low and the cost of bottled water has already surged beyond the reach of an average Gaza family, with prices spiking fivefold in some places. A spokesperson for the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNWRA) pointed out that some of the food aid allowed in – rice and lentils – is useless, because people do not have clean water or fuel to prepare them. A series of airstrikes have left several bakeries and supermarkets either destroyed or damaged. Those that are still functional, can’t meet the local demand for fresh bread and are at risk of shutting down due to the shortage of essentials like flour and fuel. Gaza’s only operative wheat mill is redundant due to the power outages. The Palestinian Water Authority says Gaza’s water production is now a mere 5 per cent of its normal total, which is expected to reduce further, unless water and sanitation facilities are provided with electricity or fuel to resume its activity.

Notably, essential food items, like flour, oil and sugar, are still stocked in warehouses that haven’t been destroyed. But as many of them are located in Gaza city, it is proving physically impossible to deliver items due to the lack of fuel, damaged roads and risks from airstrikes.

The electricity blackout has also disrupted food supplies by affecting refrigeration, crop irrigation, and crop incubation devices. Over 15,000 farmers have lost their crop production and 10,000 livestock breeders have little access to fodder, with many having lost their animals. Oxfam said that the siege, combined with the airstrikes, has crippled the fishing industry with hundreds of people who rely on fishing losing access to the sea. Oxfam is urging the UN Security Council and UN Member States to act immediately to prevent the situation from deteriorating even further. And is calling for an immediate ceasefire, unfettered, equitable access to the entire Gaza Strip for humanitarian aid, and all necessary food, water, medical and fuel supplies for the needs of the population to be met.

ENDS.

For more information and interviews, please contact:
Roslyn Boatman (Tunisia) +216 29076086 / [email protected]
Lisa Rutherford (UK) +44 (0)7917 791 836 / [email protected]

Notes to editor:
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) data on food deliveries to Gaza prior to the siege can be found here – this includes both humanitarian food aid and imports
OCHA updates show that a total of 62 trucks of aid have been allowed to enter Gaza via the
Rafah crossing from Saturday 21 – Tuesday 24 October.
Saturday 21 October – 20 trucks entered via Rafah, 5 of which contained food.
Sunday 22 October – 14 trucks entered via Rafah, 12 of which contained food.
Monday 23 October – 20 trucks entered, 11 of which contained food.
Tuesday 24 October- 8 trucks entered, 2 of which contained food.
UN Security Council resolution UNSC 2417 – Protection of civilians in armed conflict

Israel’s blockade of Gaza hits 15 years with no diplomatic resolution in sight

June 21, 2022

The United Nations and all other humanitarian actors have spent 15 years delivering humanitarian support to 2.1m Palestinians blockaded inside Gaza, and yet, there is still no sustained collective political action or will to resolve it.

In those 15 years, the international community has spent an estimated US$5.7 billion in Gaza just to help keep an incredibly resilient population afloat, in impossible conditions.

“The humanitarian relief effort has long become a permanent operation. We are collectively forced into being de facto enablers of an open-air prison,” said Oxfam International Executive Director, Gabriela Bucher, on marking 15 years of the blockade.

“Today, seven out of ten people in Gaza depend on aid. This must change. We look to the UN Secretary-General personally to make the immediate lifting of the Gaza blockade a priority,” Bucher said. “Israel’s control is total, extending down to levels that are frankly ridiculous and punishing – like banning Gaza’s export of tomatoes unless they have had their green tops removed, so they can’t be kept as fresh”.

This month, Oxfam joins a civil society campaign, #OpenUpGaza15. “We need to stop the tragedy of Gaza from continuing to drain all the joy and aspiration of its youth, year upon year. It is imperative that we help the next generation not to be lost to the blockade. Over 800,000 young Palestinians have spent their entire lives trapped within Gaza. They have known nothing else,” she said.

These young people face a 63 percent probability of having no job. For girls it’s even worse – four out of five won’t find paid work. Gaza has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world.

“Most all of Israel’s restrictions are motivated by politics, not security. Palestinian families in Gaza are being collectively and illegally punished,” said Oxfam’s Country Director, Shane Stevenson. “Israel bans the export of date paste, cookies, and French fries. It has forbidden 3G and 4G phone data and there’s no PayPal. This is not a place where a young person can be expected to flourish and find happiness.”

#OpenUpGaza15 will feature the everyday stories from 15 young people about their daily deprivations, curbs, and constraints with which they have to deal just to pursue their lives and their interests.

Ahmad Abu Dagga, 15, excels in sciences but fears that he will finish his 12 years of school without ever seeing a microscope in his school laboratory.

Alaa Abu Sleih, 23, was born with a physical disability. A few years ago, the control panel of his wheel chair broke down and he cannot get a new one. The chair tyres are wearing out and he worries how he will get around.

Oxfam’s humanitarian and development efforts in Gaza are all constantly undermined by Israel’s suffocating restrictions on services and the movement of resources and people. 97 percent of Gaza’s piped water is not fit to drink and electricity supply is restricted to 12 hours per day.

“The UN and its member states must become the diplomatic power brokers needed to end this blockade now,” Stevenson said. “All sides must commit to a time-bound plan with actions and strong accountability mechanisms. We refuse to accept that all the effort made to maintain the blockade for 15 years can’t instead be harnessed for good and to consign it to history.”