Irene Campbell

I fully agree with that point. The director general of the World Health Organisation stated: “There are no fully-functioning hospitals in Gaza, and only 14 out of 36 are functioning at all.” He also said: “If you take the famine and combine it with a mental health problem, which we see is rampant, then the situation is a crisis for generations to come.” The public health report of 13 November attributed the weakened healthcare system to ongoing attacks and resource shortages. The World Health Organisation also found that there is a chronic shortage of essential medical equipment and medicines. Additionally, ongoing fuel shortages in Gaza have restricted the mobility of humanitarian aid and healthcare workers. As we approach winter and the weather gets colder, the need for humanitarian aid is intensifying. The United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that heavy rain has already affected over 13,000 households across the Gaza strip, including hundreds of tents and makeshift shelters. As time passes, the need for items such as tents, blankets and tarps will only increase. On 6 November, the United Nations stated that the Israeli authorities have rejected more than 100 requests to bring relief materials into Gaza since the ceasefire began. The UN further stated that: “Since 10 October, more than 6,490 MT”— metric tonnes— “of UN-coordinated relief materials have been denied entry into Gaza. Of these, over 3,700 MT were rejected on the grounds that the organisations were not authorized to bring relief items into Gaza.”