The humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to grow more dire with each passing day. Humanitarian Fund (GHF) is finding it harder and harder to get life-saving food aid out the door. The organization has recently appealed to the public to refrain from arriving at distribution points before official opening times, amid growing chaos and desperation among the population. With continuing shortages and looting, GHF’s ability to bring relief is on the razor’s edge.
Last week, GHF reported that it distributed over 140,000 boxes of food, each designed to sustain a family for approximately half a week. With the help of those 60,000 volunteers, the organization aims to deliver 4.5 million meals each day. For operational reasons, the WaPo has been unable to reach this ambitious target. At present, GHF operates a network of three distribution sites across Gaza, including two in southern Gaza and one in central Gaza. There, the organization has delivered more than 17,000 boxes of food.
In one pilot project, GHF was able to serve more than 10,000 meals directly to local leaders in communities just north of Rafah. Even as they continued to make progress, the organization was going through some existential crises. It was forced to close its distribution centers on Saturday due to threats made by Hamas. On Sunday, GHF opened their doors again but not without running into some quick challenges. Eyewitnesses described mayhem at distribution centers, often run by the Red Cross. We saw some people take five and even ten boxes worth of groceries.
“Some people took five or 10 boxes, and there’s no organization at all,” – Mohammad Abu Akouz
The security situation remains precarious. GHF documented cases of drivers being killed and injured while trying to deliver humanitarian assistance. All the while, airstrikes have surrounded humanitarian aid convoys, and the Israeli military continues to restrict aid routes, sparking increasingly tragic conditions. In an apparently related development over the last week, Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) Maj. They verified that 350 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid crossed through the Kerem Shalom crossing and into the Gaza Strip. With many community kitchens no longer in business. This is in part because of the orders to cut supplies and displacement, which exacerbates the crisis even more.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) sounded an alarm. Over half of the community kitchens are unable to feed everyone who needs it, highlighting the growing hunger crisis across the area. At the same time, the number of children at risk of acute malnutrition is increasing dramatically as supplies of food run out.
“People in Gaza are starving. This demands the urgent opening of all crossings and allowing unimpeded access for humanitarian organizations to deliver aid at scale, through multiple routes,” – UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Humanitarian conditions have rapidly deteriorated to the point where civilians, in desperate acts of survival, are reported to be looting out of necessity. UN has recorded abuse on working street children. Large numbers of these people cluster at congested, non-secure distribution hubs, clamoring and often fighting for available food.
“Children are reported working on the streets, participating in looting or gathering within large crowds in search of food supplies at insecure distribution points,” – UNRWA
One resident, Umm Zuhair, stated:
“We’re so hungry that we’re willing to risk getting shot just for a kilo of flour.”
Another individual shared their frustration after visiting a distribution site early in the morning:
“I went at 6 a.m. and found nothing. What’s happening is shameful. I’m holding an empty cardboard box – there’s nothing inside, not even lentils,” – Mohammad Salim
The failure to maintain efficient and organized distribution points have turned a regularly dangerous and cavalier response into a substantially severe crisis. This might seem obvious, but GHF encourages attendees to put their safety first by not showing up early or loitering around the gates before gates open. It’s obvious that most people intend to look past these warnings because they’re desperate.
Dr. Mohamed Abu Salmiya has highlighted the dire conditions faced by medical facilities in Gaza. He explained that hospitals will run out of power in less than 48 hours if fuel doesn’t come into the area. He noted that hundreds of injured still cannot receive care. This is mostly attributable to an acute lack of blood supplies and medical equipment.
In the middle of this storm, GHF has continued its work, but today the country is experiencing record levels of insecurity and risk of looting. The situation continues to be dynamic, as humanitarian agencies attempt to provide critical assistance amid many logistical and security hurdles.
