Officials and representatives to the United Nations have condemned Israel's act of killing civilians at humanitarian aid sites in the Gaza Strip.
As of July 13, a total of 875 people were recorded killed in Gaza while trying to get food, while 674 of them were killed in the vicinity of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites, according to OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan.
"We have the capacity, we have the systems, and we have the commodity, so what we need to do quickly is to procure more wheat flour, because that's a commodity that we can't have sitting for too long, so we have not had that in a procured with the risk of being spoiled. But we are quite sure that we can do the procurement in the region. So, we are ready, as I said, to scale up to the entire population for at least two months, and we can do it from tomorrow, should there be a breakthrough," said World Food Programme (WFP) Deputy Executive Director Carl Skau.
UN representatives also criticized the U.S.-backed GHF as a politicized agency that violates international principles at a UN Security Council meeting on the humanitarian situation in Gaza on Wednesday.
"The UN has repeatedly stated that the militarized distribution mechanism of humanitarian aid promoted by the United States and Israel violates the principles of fairness, independence, and neutrality. This mechanism is insufficient to alleviate the humanitarian situation, and on the contrary has repeatedly led to significant civilian casualties," said Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN.
"Tragic incidents in Gaza near GHF sites remind us that there are no blurred lines with regard to the respect of international humanitarian law," said Samuel Zbogar, Slovenia's permanent representative to the UN.
"As we in conference room have warned, far from addressing humanitarian issues, these mechanisms have become symbols of dishonoring human dignity and putting the lives of those in need at risk," said Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's permanent representative to the UN.
"It's for you to draw your own conclusions, but surely, we did not need to debate whether the killings of civilians waiting in lines for life essentials meet the responsibility to provide for civilian needs. We are waiting the outcome of Israel investigation into this, and earlier incidents, whether Israel incorporated all feasible precautions to avoid a minimized civilian harms in all circumstances," said Tom Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator.
UN officials, representatives condemn Israel's killing of Gazans at aid sites
UN officials, representatives condemn Israel's killing of Gazans at aid sites
UN officials, representatives condemn Israel's killing of Gazans at aid sites
