Lazzarini: Failure to allow aid into Gaza is "complicity"

The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) confirmed on Sunday that failure to pressure Israel to allow aid into Gaza is "complicity" in starving Palestinians in the Strip.

In a post on X, Lazzarini shared a sample of a frequently received message from UNRWA staff in the Gaza Strip: "I'm looking for food for my children, but there's nothing."

He commented on this by saying: “We receive daily messages from our hungry colleagues at UNRWA.”

"How can one respond to these messages of despair? It's shameful and doubles my sense of helplessness," he added.

He stressed that "all of this is man-made, with complete impunity (enjoyed by Israel)."

He pointed out that "food is available only a few kilometers away" on the border with Gaza.

He added, "UNRWA alone has sufficient stocks outside Gaza to cover the needs of the entire population for the next three months, but we have not been allowed to bring in any aid since March 2."

Lazzarini stressed that "political will is required" to push Israel to allow aid into the Strip.

He concluded by saying: "Inaction is complicity that makes us lose our humanity."

Earlier today, medical sources in Gaza announced that Israel's starvation policy in the Strip has resulted in the deaths of 86 Palestinians, including 76 children, due to malnutrition resulting from the denial of aid entry into the Strip since October 2023.

She also noted that "18 deaths were recorded within 24 hours due to famine in Gaza."