NGOs and humanitarian associations insist on the need for a ceasefire, rather than a truce of a few days, given the needs in the Palestinian enclave, subject to bombardments by the Israeli army for more than a year. months and a half, are immense.
After seven weeks of intensive Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, “the situation is appalling” in the Palestinian enclave, sighs, on the line, Louise Bichet, head of the Middle East pole for Médecins du monde. “The truce was expected, it remains good news, but it is absolutely not enough”, she warns straight away. After being pushed back by 24 hours, the long-awaited four-day break came into effect on the morning of Friday, November 24. A respite which allows the entry by trucks of essential humanitarian aid into the devastated territory, maintained under Israeli blockade.
The agreement between Israel and Hamas, negotiated under the aegis of Qatar, also provides for the release of 50 hostages (of the approximately 240 held by the Islamist movement) kidnapped during the terrorist attacks of October 7, in exchange for 150 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons. Trucks have therefore been able to enter the Gaza Strip since Friday morning to deliver food and medical equipment to the population. But, for NGOs and humanitarian associations, only a real long-term ceasefire will make it possible to truly help the Palestinians.
“Largest humanitarian shipment” since the start of the war
On the first day of the truce, Friday, “200 humanitarian aid trucks entered, including 105 trucks loaded with food”according to a Israeli army spokesperson on the social network. This delivery constituted the “largest humanitarian convoy” since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas more than a month and a half ago, the United Nations agency responsible for humanitarian coordination (Ocha) underlined in a press release.
Ocha specifies that 129,000 liters of fuel were also able to cross the border into Gaza, and that 21 patients in critical situations were also able to be evacuated from the north of the enclave. “Hundreds of thousands of people have been helped with food, water, medical equipment and other essentials”added the UN agency.
In the first day of the humanitarian pause, the @A scaled up the delivery into and across #Gaza. Hundreds of thousands were assisted with food, water, medical supplies and other essential humanitarian items.
Stay informed with Flash Update #49: 🔗https://t.co/KVQl393P6Q pic.twitter.com/1BI4IQLFn4
— OCHA oPt (Palestine) (@ochaopt) November 25, 2023
Truck arrivals continued on the second day of the truce, Saturday. According to the Israeli army spokesperson, “200 aid trucks [étaient] expected” Saturday in the Gaza Strip. In particular, they had to transport “food”of “the water”, “medical equipment” And “personal hygiene products”. According to Cogat, theIsraeli civil administration in the Palestinian territories, more than 50 trucks are particularly dedicated to humanitarian aid in the north of the Gaza Strip, the area most affected by the bombings.
“The trucks should come in continuously”
But, for the NGOs, this truce is only“a drop of water”, declares Louise Bichet. Before October 7 and “total seat” imposed by Israel on the Palestinian enclave, up to 500 trucks of humanitarian aid crossed the border every day to supply the territory subject to a blockade since 2007.
“The trucks should return continuously, day and night, and they should be able to do so other than through the Rafah gate alone”, on the Egyptian border, continues this representative of Médecins du monde. The NGO has 16 people on site waiting for the delivery of six tonnes of medical equipment “in the coming days.”
“It’s not just a matter of bringing in trucks. We must ensure that civil infrastructure, such as roads, are passable, that we have sufficient fuel oil, she adds. Just food distribution for a population of more than a million people who are hungry and desperate, it’s technical, it can’t be improvised.”
“Four days is obviously totally insufficient, even if only to assess needs and distribute aid.”
Louise Bichet, head of the Middle East division for Médecins du mondeat franceinfo
“It’s a respite that allows you to do some activities that were on hold”, reports Jean-Raphaël Poitou, Middle East manager of Action Against Hunger, who can count on 18 people on site. The NGO teams deploy their actions in “a better security context” but “will not be able to do more”. Concretely, they help the Gazan population via “the distribution of drinking water”, “fruits and vegetables”, “the creation of hygiene kits”, “the repair of sanitary facilities” or “the reinstallation of solar panels.”
A truce “not enough” to “care for people properly”
But the needs are immense, “incommensurable”. “The level of destruction of homes is unprecedented and is roughly estimated at 50%. So we have a million people without homes”continues Jean-Raphaël Poitou. “We are approaching winter and there is nothing left to eat”he adds. “In all areas, the situation is appalling”explains Louise Bichet, who takes as her sole example the need to bury bodies “extremely dangerous in epidemic terms”.
This four-day truce will not be “not sufficient” For “take care of people properly” because the human and material damage is too great in Gaza and “the hospital and health system has completely collapsed”warns Claire Magone, general director of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).
“Hospitals in Gaza have collapsed. The truce must absolutely hold until new surgical teams arrive,” abounds with Release Pascal Hundt, regularly in charge of crisis missions at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). MSF teams on site, “like the population”are “completely stunned”underlines Claire Magone. She denounce the “spiral of violence and murderous madness” in the enclave in recent days, which “also affects the staff” long.
All reiterate their call for a lasting ceasefire. “These four days will not change the lives of the populations, that is why we continue to call for a ceasefire”, insists Jean-Raphaël Poitou. Failing this, the latter evokes “a truce of several weeks” Or “the opening of crossing points to the north” from Gaza. At this time, humanitarian staff are plunged into uncertainty. “We don’t know what will happen next”confides the representative of Action Against Hunger. “Our only hope is to have time, to hurry to take care of the living while telling ourselves: what will happen next, once this window closes?”