International NGO, Oxfam, has said that Israel’s military is killing Palestinians at an average rate of 250 people a day which massively exceeds the daily death toll of any other major conflict of recent years.
“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,” Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East Director, said in a statement on Thursday. Adding that “nowhere is safe and the entire population is at risk of famine.”
Using publicly available data, Oxfam calculated that the number of average deaths per day in 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).
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“It is unimaginable that the international community is watching the deadliest rate of conflict of the 21st century unfold, while continuously blocking calls for a ceasefire,” she said.
Over one million people – more than half the population – have been forced to seek shelter in Rafah on the Egyptian border, the aid agency said.
Overcrowding and Low Food Supplies
Oxfam staff in Rafah report massive overcrowding, with very little food and water, and essential medicines having run out. This crisis, they say, is further compounded by Israel’s restrictions on the entry of aid, closing borders, imposing a siege, and denying unfettered access.
“Currently only 10 percent of the weekly food aid needed is getting in,” the statement added.
Oxfam is also warning of the massive threat to life, beyond direct casualties, from hunger and disease.
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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 to get a blanket.
Immediate Ceasefire Required
Sally Abi Khalil said: “While the mass atrocities continue, lives continue to be lost and critical supplies cannot get in.”
She warned that 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, diarrhea and cold. The situation is particularly worrying for children, pregnant women and those with existing medical conditions.”
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The Oxfam official said, “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.”
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 23,708 Palestinians have been killed, and 60,500 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Palestinian and international estimates say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
