U.N.: Israel's border closures halting Gaza food aid

More than half of Gaza residents are refugees and their descendants from the 1948-49 war over Israel's creation and many still live in squalid shantytowns.

The Israeli blockade has plunged the crowded territory even further into poverty, while keeping construction materials out and Gazans locked in. About 80 percent of Gaza's 1.4 million residents depend on food aid, according to U.N. figures.

Israeli military spokesman Peter Lerner said the crossing was closed in response to rocket fire into Israel from Gaza. No decision had yet been made about when to reopen the crossings but the government was considering the U.N.'s position, Lerner said.

However, "If Hamas continues firing rockets into Israel, it impedes our ability to open the crossings," he said.

The U.N.'s Ging said vulnerable Gazans shouldn't be held hostage to the actions of militants.

"International law, which regulates all these issues even during conflict, requires that civilian populations have access to the goods and services that they need to survive," he said.

Besides providing food aid in Gaza, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency runs more than 220 schools and provides health care to more than 1 million Palestinians.

"If there's nothing there it will be a disaster for people here," said Adil Adwalla, 35, pointing to the distribution center in the Shati refugee camp, where he lives. He can't find work as a construction worker because the blockade has make building materials scare, he said.

1|2

PrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email