GENEVA: The United Nations stated on Thursday that it cannot verify the number of aid trucks waiting inside Gaza due to Israel’s refusal to grant access.
More than 100 aid and rights groups warn of spreading “mass starvation” among Gaza’s two million Palestinians.
Israel’s military denied blocking aid, claiming 950 truckloads are on the Gaza side awaiting distribution. However, Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, said Israel has not permitted UN presence at militarised border crossings.
“We cannot verify the amount of supplies currently at the crossing,“ he told AFP.
Laerke explained that multiple Israeli approvals are needed—first to bring aid into Gaza, then another to collect it.
“Israel must facilitate humanitarian operations all the way to those in need,“ he stressed, calling for safe routes and no attacks on civilians.
Since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Israel imposed a full blockade until late May.
The US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operations on May 26, offering free aid delivery.
However, the UN and major aid groups refuse to work with GHF, citing concerns over military alignment.
The UN reports over 1,000 Palestinians killed while seeking food since GHF started. UNRWA has 6,000 trucks of aid stranded in Jordan and Egypt, barred from entering Gaza since March. – AFP
