In order to transfer crucial medical supplies and humanitarian relief to Gaza, the World Health Organization (WHO) has made an urgent appeal for access. During a press conference, Dr. Richard Brennan, the regional emergency director for the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean division, highlighted the necessity of quick access to Gaza.
Image Source : CNBC
WHO waiting for the approval to enter Gaza
The organization is awaiting approval to enter Gaza through this crucial route and has aid prepared south of the Rafa gate. This situation is urgent because of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Following a Hamas attack on Israeli territory on October 7, which was met with intensive Israeli airstrikes and a siege, the fighting intensified. The WHO envoy in the occupied Palestinian areas, Dr. Richard Peeperkorn, reported that the ongoing violence have claimed a considerable number of lives. As of the time of the announcement, Israeli airstrikes have resulted in 2,800 fatalities and 11,000 injuries in Gaza, with over half of the victims being women and children.
350,000 vulnerable residents in Gaza suffer from chronic conditions like diabetes
In addition, 115 assaults on medical facilities have negatively impacted Gaza’s healthcare system. Critical commodities including water, electricity, and medical supplies are in low supply in Gaza, and many hospitals there are not operating to their full capacity.
The potential of disease epidemics in Gaza is one of the serious issues the WHO has raised. The 350,000 vulnerable residents of Gaza who suffer from chronic conditions like diabetes are finding it more and more difficult to receive the necessary healthcare services as the healthcare system is understaffed and resources are limited.
Tensions grew after the attack by Hamas on October 7
On Saturday, October 7, the Islamist organization Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, launched its most intense offensive on Israel in decades. militants from Gaza fired thousands of rockets at Israeli towns before scaling the strongly defended border fence with Israel and infiltrating a significant portion of Israeli land. According to Israeli authorities, there, Hamas gunmen killed at than 1,400 people, including civilians and soldiers, and held 199 captives.
Since the Arab-Israeli War of 1948, Israel has not engaged its foes in a proper war on its own territory, making the attacks both unusual in terms of tactics and scope. Additionally, it has never had a terror act of this vast scale in which the so many of its citizens died. While Hamas has previously kidnapped Israelis, it has never done so while simultaneously holding scores of captives, including young children and the elderly.
The operation was named “Al-Aqsa Storm” by Hamas, who said it was in retaliation for Israeli assaults on women, the destruction of the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, and the continuous siege of Gaza.
Israel has declared war in retaliation for the assault and has started “Operation Swords of Iron,” which involves attacking what it claims are Hamas and Islamic Jihad sites in Gaza. Additionally, it has cut off the flow of water and fuel supplies to the Gazan populace. The IDF has vowed to kill the mastermind of the hamas attack yahya sinwar.
6000 bombs dropped between October 7 and October 12
Between October 7 and October 12, Israel dropped 6,000 bombs on the area, which is densely populated. This amount is equal to all bombings carried out on Gaza throughout the 50-day 2014 conflict.
The World Health Organization is urgently pleading for permission to enter Gaza in order to give medical care, supplies, and support to the local population in the middle of a protracted humanitarian catastrophe that has been made worse by the region’s ongoing hostilities. The predicament highlights the urgent necessity for quick action to meet Gaza’s population’s medical and humanitarian requirements.
