Stephane Dujarric stresses that civilians in Gaza must be protected and their needs must be met.

The United Nations Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric voiced his deep concern on Thursday over Israel’s repeated targeting of UN schools, housing displaced Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip.  

Dujarric quoted the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) while highlighting the strike on six schools in recent days and Al Amal Institute for Orphans on Wednesday, all serving as shelters for displaced Palestinians. 

“Once again, OCHA stresses that international humanitarian law demands that the parties take constant care to spare civilians from harm,” he said.

“Civilians must be protected, and their essential needs must be met,” the UN spokesperson added.

Acute Malnutrition

The UN official in his press briefing touched on the dire humanitarian situation of children in particular bringing into the limelight the issue of malnutrition.

Dujarric told reporters that the UN’s humanitarian partners are exerting huge efforts “to provide treatment to malnourished children in Gaza, despite the limited entry of critical supplies and the loss of access to some of the humanitarian warehouses.”

He revealed that over 24,000 children in Gaza were screened for malnutrition “last month alone — bringing the total screened since mid-January to nearly 319,000 children under the age of 5.”

Israel Destroys ‘almost 80% of Agricultural Lands’ Vital to Survival in Gaza – Euro-Med Rights Group

“This includes more than 70,000 children in Gaza’s northern governorates.  Of all screened children, nearly 22,000 have been diagnosed with acute malnutrition,” Dujarric stressed.

The UN spokesperson stated that around 50.000 children under the age of five in addition to 18,000 pregnant or breastfeeding mothers received supplementary feeding. However, there is limited ability to store “supplies that require refrigeration.”

Bureaucratic Hurdles

Dujarric accused the Israeli occupation authorities of imposing “bureaucratic hurdles, lack of security guarantees within Gaza, insufficient border crossing points”, which he said limited the distribution of essential aid by the World Food Program (WFP).

“In September, to date, the World Food Programme reached nearly 900,000 vulnerable people in Gaza and the West Bank, including more than 688,000 people in Gaza alone,” he stated.

‘Future Stolen’ – Tlaib Brings List of Children Killed in Gaza to US Congress

The UN official emphasized that the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza has hindered as well the “partners to maintain operations and distribute items, including food to those who are in need of it.”

According to Dujarric, WFP distributed over 9.4 million hot meals through a network of 72 community kitchens and were able to reach 186,161 people in September, declaring that food baskets will not be distributed in October “as the flow of essential goods has been critically restricted.”

Gaza Genocide Continues

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.

Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.

 According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 41,788 Palestinians have been killed, and 96,794 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.

Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.

Using the Gaza Playbook in Lebanon – How Words Can Justify a Genocide

Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.

Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.

The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.

The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety. 

(The Palestine Chronicle)