The United Nations has called for the reopening of all crossings into Gaza for the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid, dismissing recent reports of aid distribution by the U.S.-run Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) as “a distraction.”
Speaking to reporters in Geneva on Tuesday, Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian office (OCHA), said, “What is actually needed is a reopening of all the crossings into Gaza, a secure environment within Gaza, and faster facilitation of missions and final approvals of all the emergency supplies that we have just outside the border and needs to get in.”
Laerke also criticized Israeli restrictions on aid, saying the assistance allowed into Gaza was being “cherry-picked” and often did not correspond to the actual needs on the ground.
Separately, Juliette Touma, spokeswoman for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), said during the same briefing via videolink that U.N. agencies “do not have any information” about whether the GHF had delivered any supplies to the besieged territory.
“We know what’s needed, we know what’s missing, and we are very, very far from that daily target,” Touma said, stressing that “the needs are 500-600 trucks at a minimum that should go into Gaza, loaded with supplies. Not only food but also medicine, medical supplies, vaccines for children, fuel, water, and other basics for people’s survival.”
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