Gaza Strip: WHO for Immediate Ceasefire, Humanitarian Crisis

March 22, 2024 Hour: 4:27 pm

On Friday, WHO said that a cease-fire and efforts to achieve a lasting peace are the only solutions that can end the suffering long endured by the people of the Gaza Strip.

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The regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean of the World Health Organization (WHO), Hanan Hassan Balkhy, warned in a statement about the spread of hunger and disease in the coastal enclave.

I reiterate WHO’s calls on all parties to ensure sustained and unimpeded access of aid to and through the Strip, she said.

She highlighted her recent visit to the Rafah crossing, which connects Egypt to Gaza and represents the only crossing not controlled by Israel.

Since the escalation of hostilities in the occupied Palestinian territory, Egypt has played a key role in facilitating the delivery of aid to the neighboring territory and providing free medical care and treatment to evacuated patients, she said.

The Gaza death toll has risen to more than 32,065 Palestinians amid Israel’s continued bombardment of the besieged enclave since October 7, says the health ministry.

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March 22, 2024

Hassan Balkhy detailed that the Egyptian Crescent has 1,500 trucks loaded with aid ready to cross and another 1,000 ready for Israeli inspection, a prerequisite for entry.

In this regard, she pointed out that representatives of this organization criticized “the long and complicated inspection process and the ambiguous rejection criteria established by the Israeli authorities, which continue to impede the flow of aid to Gaza.”

On several occasions, the Cairo authorities have accused the neighboring country of hindering the entry of large volumes of vital goods for the needy Gazan population.

At El-Arish General Hospital in the Sinai Peninsula, I spoke with men, women and children with major injuries ranging from broken bones to blast injuries and head trauma, Hassan Balkhy revealed.

I met an 18-year-old girl who waited three months for treatment for her broken leg, and a mother with twins born in Gaza during the war, one of whom is now awaiting urgent heart surgery in Egypt, he said.

The WHO official said she also spoke with “elderly people suffering from chronic diseases who were unable to access treatment for many weeks before being evacuated and who are now suffering the consequences.”