“I fear that the worst is yet to come"
A UN official in charge of relief efforts has said that ‘humanity is failing’ in regards to the violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
“Civilians in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory are suffering from a week of utter anguish and devastation,” Martin Griffiths, humanitarian affairs undersecretary general and emergency relief coordinator, said in a statement.
“I fear that the worst is yet to come”, he added.
1300 Israelis were killed in Hamas’ terrorist attack on October 7. An estimated 150 people, including children, were captured by Hamas and taken as hostages into Gaza. Gaza is home to around 2 million people ― roughly half of which are children.
In response to the attack, Israel has carried out airstrikes on Gaza, saying it wants to crush Hamas. The Israeli Defence Forces said that it had already dropped more than 6,000 bombs on Gaza.
Earlier today, Gaza’s Health Ministry said that at least 2,750 Palestinians have been killed and 9,700 wounded in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.
Griffiths said in his statement: “In Israel, families are reeling from the horror of last Saturday’s attack. More than a thousand people have been killed and many more injured. Over 100 people are held captive.
“In Gaza, families have been bombed while inching their way south along congested, damaged roads, following an evacuation order that left hundreds of thousands of people scrambling for safety but with nowhere to go.
“Nearly 2000 people have been killed and many more have been injured. There is no power, no water and no fuel. Food supplies are running dangerously low. Hospitals, overwhelmed with patients, are running out of medicine.”
Griffiths went on to add that even wars have rules, and these rules must be upheld, at all times, and by all sides.
He said: “Civilians must be allowed to leave for safer areas. And whether they move or stay, constant care must be taken to spare them.”
He also said anyone held captive must be treated humanely and all hostages must be released.
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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