MSeveral UN organizations have raised the alarm about the situation of children in the Gaza Strip. Food shortages, increasing malnutrition and the rapid spread of disease could lead to a massive increase in deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN children's agency Unicef and the World Food Program (WFP) said on Monday.
“The Gaza Strip is on the verge of an explosion in preventable child deaths that would worsen the already intolerable levels of child mortality in the Strip,” said UNICEF representative Ted Chaiban.
Twenty weeks after the start of the war between Israel and the radical Islamic Hamas in the Gaza Strip, food and clean water have become “incredibly scarce” in the Palestinian territory, the UN organizations said. At least 90 percent of children under five suffered from one or more infectious diseases.
“Hunger and disease are a deadly combination,” said WHO emergency coordinator Mike Ryan. “Hungry, weak and deeply traumatized children are more likely to get sick, and sick children, particularly those with diarrhea, cannot absorb nutrients well,” he said. “This is dangerous and tragic and is happening before our eyes.”
Fear of the offensive in Rafah
International concern is growing over the looming Israeli ground offensive in the refugee-filled city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. On Tuesday, the UN Security Council is expected to vote on a resolution submitted by Algeria calling for an immediate ceasefire. If the US, as Israel's ally, vetoes it as announced, it would have to “take responsibility for everything that happens afterwards,” said a diplomat. “If Rafah happens, there is no going back.”
Benny Gantz, a minister in Israel's war cabinet, made it clear on Sunday: “The world must know, and Hamas leaders must know, that if our hostages are not home by Ramadan, the fighting will continue and spread to Rafah.” . However, it is uncertain whether international mediators will be able to negotiate a ceasefire and the release of hostages by the start of the Muslim fasting month on March 10.
USA: No ground offensive under “current circumstances”
The USA, as Israel's ally, is also under increasing pressure. In recent days, Washington had tried to prevent a vote on the Algerian resolution text – according to its own statements, in order not to endanger negotiations between Israel and the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas. But Washington could also want to avoid being seen as a pioneer in Israel's increasingly criticized conduct of the war.
With regard to Rafah, its own draft resolution states that “such a large-scale ground offensive should not be carried out under the current circumstances.” A “temporary ceasefire in Gaza is needed as soon as possible”. The text, which is available to the German Press Agency, indicates that the USA is further distancing itself from the Israeli military operation in the south of the Gaza Strip. However, the American text will not initially be voted on in the World Security Council.
EU foreign ministers call for an immediate ceasefire
Germany and 25 other EU states are calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. This should lead to a sustainable ceasefire, the unconditional release of the hostages and the provision of humanitarian aid, according to a statement made on Monday evening after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. The decision of the International Court of Justice of January 26th is also cited as the background to the demand, with which Israel was bindingly ordered under international law to do everything possible to prevent genocide in the Gaza Strip. The Foreign Ministers also called on Israel not to take military action in Rafah that would worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation and prevent the urgent provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance.
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