‘A drop in an ocean of need’
Participants in a conference aiming to enhance humanitarian aid to Gaza underlined the importance of the role played by UNRWA
The flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza is “grossly insufficient, inconsistent and unpredictable — a drop in an ocean of need”, said UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mahmoud during the Cairo Ministerial Conference to Enhance Humanitarian Response in Gaza.
She pointed out that more than 44,000 Palestinian lives have reportedly been lost, millions are displaced, and essential services have collapsed.
Participants in the conference, organised by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry and the United Nations, condemned the ongoing Israeli assault on Gaza.
“We are here to help secure an immediate surge in lifesaving aid for the Palestinian people, ensure preparedness for a potential ceasefire, and begin laying the groundwork for recovery and reconstruction,” said Mahmoud.
“The nightmare in Gaza is not a crisis of logistics. It’s a crisis of political will and of respect for fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.”
Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held Israel, the occupying authority, fully accountable for the crisis in Gaza. He highlighted Israel’s responsibility to create secure conditions for the operation of humanitarian organisations, especially the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which plays a crucial role in Gaza and the Palestinian territories.
On 28 October, the Israeli Knesset passed a bill banning UNRWA from operating in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
UNRWA was established in 1949 by UN Resolution 302 to support Palestinians forcibly displaced from their homes in Palestine during the Nakba. The agency played an active role in the construction of Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza and continues to provide a multitude of essential services.
Mahmoud warned that if UNRWA is forced to close, the responsibility of replacing its vital services would rest solely with Israel as the occupying power.
Abdelatty called on all participating countries to provide the support and resources needed to address the urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza and ensure that aid is delivered, and reiterated calls on countries that have not yet recognised the state of Palestine to do so without delay and back full Palestinian UN membership.
Delegations from 103 countries and organisations attended the conference, which opened on Monday under the auspices of President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. Participants convening under the banner “A year since the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza: urgent needs, lasting solutions”, included Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Mustafa and UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini.
Lazzarini highlighted the agency’s losses during the conflict in Gaza and stressed the importance of providing legal protection and safe conditions so the organisation’s staff can perform their duties. Almost all of the 251 UN personnel killed since the conflict started worked for UNRWA.
Describing the situation in Gaza as a “nightmare”, Lazzarini called for a large-scale humanitarian response to address catastrophic conditions.
UNRWA has been working in Palestine for over 75 years and has provided services such as education and healthcare to Palestine refugees in the occupied territories as well as in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.
An EU statement at the end of the conference noted that it has mobilised over €300 million and all the humanitarian instruments at its disposal to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinians, and organised over 60 humanitarian air bridge flights to provide critical assistance.
The EU called for safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian goods and staff, the opening of all access routes to international aid and commercial imports, and urgent actions to restore law and order and stop the looting of aid. The EU also reiterated its support of the UN system, including the “irreplaceable role of UNRWA”.
In her address to the conference, Executive Director of the Egyptian Red Crescent Amal Imam stressed that the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe cannot be ended unless Palestinians in Gaza are protected.
Imam also stressed the importance of multiparty collaboration to enhance the humanitarian response in Gaza.
France will mobilise €50 million to support the humanitarian response in Gaza, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said during the conference. He stressed that the two-state solution is the only route to achieving peace and security in the region.
On the sidelines of the conference, Abdelatty held meetings with Mauro Vieira, minister of foreign affairs of Brazil, and with his Slovenian counterpart Tanja Fajon.
In his meeting with Carl Skau, deputy executive director and chief operating officer of the World Food Programme (WFP), Egypt’s top diplomat expressed Cairo’s support for the WFP’s role in supporting humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza and around the globe.
Photo: Egyptian Foreign Minister Abdelatty speaking at the Cairo Ministerial Conference to Enhance Humanitarian Response in Gaza. Source: ahram.online.
