The World Food Program (WFP) Monday warned that food operations in the war-torn Gaza Strip face growing challenges as the Israeli genocidal aggression on the Strip persists.
“WFP’s operations are severely hampered by intensifying conflict, the limited number of border crossings and damaged roads,” WFP said in a news release, while pointing that “In the last two months, amid continuing catastrophic hunger, ]it[ has had to reduce the contents of food parcels in Gaza as inflows of aid dipped and supplies dwindled.”
It affirmed that “With two, or occasionally three, border crossings open, roughly half of the required food assistance entered Gaza in July. August is set to end with a similar result.”
At the level of service crisis, WFP revealed that “ten months into the war, Palestinians in Gaza are crowded into an ever-shrinking space without adequate sanitation or healthcare and are repeatedly uprooted by evacuation orders that also disrupt the aid centres intended to support them, including the food distributions and community kitchens supported by the UN World Food Programme (WFP).”
Highlighting the issue of the state of roads, WFP also warned “about the state of the war-scarred roads it uses to transport food assistance around Gaza.”
“The shell craters and debris make driving slow and challenging for truck drivers even in dry weather. In two months, when rain and flooding is expected, most roads will become unusable,” it elaborated.
“Alongside the desperate needs of today, we must think about what’s coming. We won’t be able to bring food to the people of Gaza unless urgent repairs are done on these roads. We must be able to bring in the heavy machinery that is needed and work with communities so we have the labour to fix the roads before the rain comes,” said WFP Palestine Country Director Antoine Renard.
“Transporting food, water, medicine and hygiene equipment is critical for the survival of communities in Gaza today and will be needed for months to come. Roads are part of this lifeline. We must have the necessary security guarantees so that our staff and service providers are safe when carrying out these road repairs,” Renard said.
Source: WAFA
