UN urges Israel to open more Gaza aid crossings | DW News

Key Concepts

• Rafa Border Crossing Closure: Announcement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office to keep the Rafa crossing closed indefinitely, contingent on Hamas returning deceased hostages' bodies.
• Healthcare System Collapse: Devastation of medical facilities in Gaza, leading to a severe shortage of beds, trauma wards, and urgent care.
• Patient Evacuation Crisis: Approximately 15,000 patients with critical conditions requiring evacuation to Egypt through the Rafa crossing, which is currently closed.
• Humanitarian Aid Inadequacy: Limited amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza, insufficient to meet the immense needs of the population, particularly for shelter, food, and hygiene.
• Disease Outbreak Risk: High risk of life-threatening infectious diseases like cholera, tuberculosis, and meningitis due to destroyed infrastructure, lack of sanitation, and overcrowding.
• Psychosocial and Mental Health Needs: Urgent requirement for scaled-up psychosocial and mental health support, especially for children who have experienced prolonged trauma.
• Infrastructure Destruction: Widespread destruction of homes (9 in 10 damaged or destroyed) and essential life-sustaining systems, including water systems.
• Crossings for Aid: Reliance on limited crossings (Karem Shalom and a secondary crossing in the middle) for aid entry, with a call for opening northern crossings and Rafa for direct access.
• Winter Preparedness: Critical need for shelter, blankets, and winter clothing for families as winter approaches.

Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza: Healthcare Collapse and Aid Shortages

Rafa Border Crossing Closure and its Implications

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has announced that the Rafa border crossing will remain closed until further notice. The reopening is conditional on Hamas returning the bodies of deceased hostages held in Gaza. This decision has severe implications for the humanitarian situation, particularly for critically ill patients needing evacuation.

Devastation of Healthcare Facilities

The transcript highlights the catastrophic state of Gaza's healthcare system. Many hospitals have been destroyed, leaving thousands in urgent need of medical care. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that only 13 hospitals are currently partly functional for a population of 2 million people. This has resulted in overcrowded hospitals, patients being treated in makeshift quarters, and a significant backlog of cases, with some individuals waiting months for urgent treatment.

Specific Case: Hassan, a child, developed severe infections due to lack of care, leading to the loss of his right eye and suffering from malnutrition. He lost significant weight, dropping from 65 kilos to around 35-40 kilos over 2.5 months.

The destruction extends to major facilities like Shifa Hospital and a former children's hospital, with the rebuilding process estimated to take decades.

Escalating Health Risks and Disease Outbreaks

The lack of adequate medical facilities and supplies, coupled with destroyed infrastructure, has created a high risk of life-threatening infectious diseases. Experts warn of spiraling outbreaks of meningitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, diarrheal diseases, and respiratory illnesses.

Patient Evacuation Crisis

Approximately 15,000 patients with the most dire problems are waiting to be evacuated through the Rafa crossing to Egypt for treatment. The closure of this crossing means these individuals, some with severe injuries like torn tendons, severed nerves, and amputated limbs, have no immediate path to recovery. Amjad Shaw, head of the Palestinian NGO network, stated, "It will have severe impacts and really that these people who are phoning us every day regarding their medical evacuation to outside through Rafael crossings now to further notice there will be no improvement on their health conditions. We could lose so many of these lives because of this ignorance by the Israelis toward this suffering of these people."

Inadequacy of Humanitarian Aid

Despite a ceasefire, the amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza remains severely limited, falling far short of the population's needs. Amjad Shaw noted that aid is "still very limited amount comparing to the needs that Gazans are asking for." He further elaborated that about 90% of the population is dependent on humanitarian aid, and 93% have been displaced. There is an urgent need for 300,000 tents to shelter displaced people, especially with winter approaching.

Yusra Abu Shar, Gaza program coordinator for Inara, described the situation as "catastrophic," with depleted medical supplies, overused equipment, and exhausted healthcare staff. She highlighted that even partially functioning hospitals are not equipped for advanced or tertiary care, leading to a dire need for evacuation. She also mentioned that at least 42,000 cases have life-altering and life-changing injuries requiring care not available in Gaza.

Aid Infrastructure and Crossings

While some aid is entering, Yusra Abu Shar stated that "very few hundreds of trucks are getting into Gaza strip but unfortunately they are not enough to meet the dire need on the ground." UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram confirmed that UNICEF has been operating in Gaza and bringing in aid since May, but the quantities and types of aid have been restricted. She emphasized the need for a larger scale-up in the volume of aid and called for all available crossings into Gaza to open, including those in the north, to facilitate direct aid delivery. Currently, aid primarily enters through Karem Shalom and a secondary crossing in the middle area.

Infrastructure Destruction and Winter Challenges

Tess Ingram reported that nine in ten homes in the Gaza Strip have been damaged or destroyed. Beyond homes, essential life-sustaining systems like water systems have also sustained significant damage, hindering people's ability to remain in or rebuild their areas. With winter approaching, there is an urgent need for shelter, blankets, and winter clothing for families.

Psychosocial and Mental Health Support

The prolonged conflict and trauma have created a significant need for scaled-up psychosocial and mental health support, particularly for children. Yusra Abu Shar stressed the importance of supporting children to deal with their trauma and losses to gradually return to normality.

Key Arguments and Perspectives

• Palestinian NGOs and International Organizations: They consistently highlight the severe humanitarian crisis, the collapse of the healthcare system, the inadequacy of aid, and the urgent need for medical evacuations and increased access for humanitarian supplies. They attribute the suffering directly to the destruction caused by Israeli actions and the closure of crossings.
• Israeli Government (Netanyahu's Office): Their stated position is to keep the Rafa crossing closed until Hamas returns the bodies of deceased hostages, indicating a linkage between humanitarian access and the return of hostages.
• United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF): They emphasize the critical needs of children, including food aid, nutrition treatments, water, shelter, and mental health support, and advocate for increased aid volume and access through all available crossings.

Conclusion and Takeaways

The transcript paints a grim picture of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, characterized by a collapsed healthcare system, severe shortages of essential supplies, and a critical need for medical evacuations. The closure of the Rafa border crossing exacerbates these challenges, leaving thousands of patients in dire need of care and hindering the delivery of vital humanitarian aid. The destruction of infrastructure and the looming winter season add further urgency to the crisis. There is a clear and urgent call from humanitarian actors for increased aid, the opening of all crossings, and a focus on addressing the immediate health and shelter needs of the population, particularly vulnerable children. The situation demands immediate and substantial intervention to prevent further loss of life and alleviate widespread suffering.