DaysofPal- The United Nations has warned that current aid deliveries into Gaza are vastly insufficient to meet the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe caused by nearly two years of Israel’s devastating assault.
The World Food Programme’s (WFP) chief operating officer, Carl Skau, described the aid trickle as “a drop in the ocean” outside the UN headquarters in New York. Approximately 80 trucks of food and supplies are delivered daily by the WFP, he said, falling well short of the 500 to 600 trucks that are desperately needed.
“We are not able to reach Palestinians in the north, where the fighting is most intense, and with the complete breakdown of law and order inside Gaza, the most vulnerable are simply not receiving aid,” Skau said.
The warning comes as the situation inside Gaza deteriorates further. The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that Israeli bombardment of Gaza City in recent days has targeted displaced people’s tents, residential blocks, and public infrastructure.
Evacuation orders, constant shelling, and dwindling supplies are threatening the collapse of essential services, including ambulances, health facilities, nutrition programs, and community kitchens.
OCHA also condemned Israel’s escalating restrictions on aid. The Zikim crossing, the only entry directly into famine-stricken northern Gaza, has been closed since last weekend. Meanwhile, some food items, such as peanut butter, have been banned as “luxuries,” leaving tons of procured aid stranded outside the enclave.
Humanitarian convoys face unpredictable inspection rules and repeated denials of movement: on Wednesday, Israel blocked three out of 14 planned aid missions, including two that were meant to deliver food to the north.
International frustration is mounting. Addressing the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters urged an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and unimpeded aid access. Wellington, he said, would increase its financial contribution to Gaza’s relief effort, though he noted his government was not yet ready to recognize a Palestinian state.
“We have, ever since the October 7 attacks, repeatedly demanded a ceasefire, the release of the remaining hostages, and for Israel to allow vital aid to flow into Gaza. That is where our focus remains,” Peters said.
The UN has repeatedly stressed that opportunities to deliver life-saving assistance are being “systematically blocked,” while Gaza’s civilian population faces starvation under siege.
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