“Our colleagues in the Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs report that none of the UN’s 41 attempts to reach Palestinians in besieged areas of North Gaza with life-saving assistance this month has been facilitated by Israeli authorities,” deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said at a news conference.
Stating that 37 attempts were denied by Israeli authorities, Haq reported that “four missions were approved, but then impeded on the ground and accomplished only partially.”
With winter approaching, Haq stated that thousands of forcefully displaced Palestinians are “even more vulnerable”, and sewage build-up in high-occupancy areas is “putting people’s health in jeopardy”.
Haq denied reports about the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) evacuating its premises in occupied East Jerusalem.
“UNRWA said that it maintains its operation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and in the Gaza Strip for the benefit of Palestine Refugees,” he continued, adding the agency “will continue to undertake its operations and programs despite increased attempts to actively prevent it from implementing its mandate”.
Haq also denied a report by the Wall Street Journal that claimed that the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, term was not renewed due to her alleged refusal to identify the Gaza crisis as a genocide.
“No, that’s false. Ms. Nderitu’s contract is coming to an end today, but she has now fulfilled her full term and the secretary-general (Antonio Guterres) certainly appreciates the work she did as special advisor on the prevention of genocide,” he said, noting that “regarding the definition of genocide, any idea that the secretary-general wanted her term to end because of that is just false.
“Ms. Nderitu had a prevention mandate, and what she did under that prevention mandate is point out the risk factors for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, and we appreciated that work,” he added.
Since Oct. 5, 2024, Israel has launched a large-scale ground operation in northern Gaza to allegedly prevent Palestinian resistance group Hamas from regrouping. Palestinians, however, accuse Israel of seeking to occupy the area and forcibly displace its residents.
Since then, no humanitarian aid, including food, medicine, and fuel, was allowed into the area, leaving most of the population there – estimated currently to be 80,000 – on the verge of imminent famine.
More than 2,300 people have since been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The onslaught was the latest episode in a brutal Israeli war on the Gaza Strip that has killed over 44,200 people, mostly women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023.
On Thursday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its brutal war on Gaza.
