UNICEF: Ceasefire in Gaza must be 'substantive' to end 'darkest chapters' of humanity

A ceasefire in the Gaza Strip must be “substantive, not symbolic” to end the “darkest chapters” of humanity, a UNICEF official said on Tuesday.

“Gaza has shattered humanity’s records for its darkest chapters. Humanity must now urgently write a different chapter,” UNICEF spokesman James Elder said at a UN press briefing in Geneva.

“In the three months between my visits, every horrific number rose dramatically. Gaza has shattered humanity's records for its darkest chapters. Humanity must now urgently write a different chapter.”

UNICEF Spokesperson @1james_elder.

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— UNICEF (@UNICEF) March 26, 2024

“The people of Gaza must be allowed to live,” he added.

Regarding the challenges that UNICEF and other partners face while trying to reach the north to deliver aid, he said that if the existing Erez crossing point, which is “10 minutes from where those people are putting their hands to their mouth pleading for food,” could be used in the north, the humanitarian crisis could be “turned around in a matter of days” but efforts to provide aid are being “hampered”.

He explained that “between March 1 and 22, a quarter of the 40 humanitarian aid missions in northern Gaza were rejected.”

Elder pointed out that vital aid in Gaza is obstructed, and as a result, “Lives are being lost. Dignity is being denied.”

On Saturday, the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, said Israel has prevented a food aid convoy from arriving in the northern Gaza Strip, for the second time in a week.

On Monday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Since then, Israel has intensified its bombing campaign on Gaza, including in the southernmost city of Rafah where 1.5 million Palestinians are taking refuge. It has also announced that it will stop working with UNRWA in Gaza.

UNRWA is the largest aid organisation in the occupied territories and not only provides humanitarian aid, it also runs medical centres, schools, and manages refugee camps. Its former spokesperson, Chris Gunness, said it is more like a mini-government than an aid organisation.

Israel has long lobbied hard to have UNRWA closed as it is the only UN agency to have a specific mandate to look after the basic needs of Palestinian refugees. If the agency no longer exists, argues Israel, then the refugee issue must no longer exist, and the legitimate right for Palestinian refugees to return to their land will be unnecessary. Israel has denied that right of return since the late 1940s, even though its own membership of the UN was made conditional upon Palestinian refugees being allowed to return to their homes and land.

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