Looming famine – Gaza accuses Israel and US of using aid blockade as political weapon

By the Palestine Chronicle team

The Gaza government's media office has accused Israel and the United States of intentionally worsening the famine in Gaza by using the suspension of humanitarian aid as a political tool.

In a statement reported Monday by Al-Jazeera, the media office said these actions “deliberately push 2.4 million civilians in the Gaza Strip into the tunnel of famine, imposing a policy of starvation against children and patients by preventing the entry of food. “.

“The specter of famine directly threatens the lives of citizens, warning of an increase in deaths due to hunger, especially among children, where 3,500 children are at risk of dying due to malnutrition and lack of nutritional supplements and vaccinations, now prohibited. to enter Gaza,” the statement added.

“The opposite of hope” – UNICEF spokesperson says Gaza war is a war on children

The statement condemns “the continued prevention of aid, food and goods from entering Gaza” and calls on “the international community and all free nations to denounce this crime, which is classified by law as a crime against humanity and a violation of international law. .”

Rafah crossing

The Israeli army set fire to the departure hall on the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing on Monday, cutting Gaza's connection to the outside world.

This act follows the capture of the Rafah crossing by the Israeli army 40 days ago.

The departure hall, along with other facilities and buildings, were set on fire, cutting off communication for Palestinians in Gaza.

“Criminal act” – Israeli army burns Rafah departure hall, cutting Gaza’s connection to the world

Several Palestinian social media accounts shared images showing the departure hall completely engulfed in flames.

This incident coincides with continued incursions by Israeli military vehicles into the Philadelphia-Rafah Corridor, a demilitarized buffer zone along the Gaza-Egypt border.

Genocide in progress

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

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, 37,347 Palestinians have been killed and 85,372 injured in the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza since October 7.

Additionally, at least 7,000 people are missing, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes across the Gaza Strip.

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

Gaza under fire – Israeli genocide continues with deadly airstrikes

The Israeli war has led to acute famine, mainly in northern Gaza, resulting in the deaths of many Palestinians, mostly children.

Israeli aggression has also led to the forced displacement of nearly two million people from across the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of those displaced forced to take refuge in the densely populated southern city of Rafah, near the border with Egypt – in what became the largest city in Palestine. Mass exodus since the Nakba of 1948.

Israel says 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa flooding operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed that day by “friendly fire.”

(The Chronicle of Palestine)