Hostilities across Gaza reportedly continued on Wednesday, fuelling already alarming aid access problems and dire food insecurity as the main entrance routes for relief convoys remained closed or too dangerous to access, UN aid workers warned.
In a post on X, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) confirmed that food distribution had been suspended because of a lack of supplies and ongoing hostilities that have made it too dangerous for aid teams to work.
“The situation in Rafah has been significantly deteriorating since the initial evacuation orders were issued there on 6 May,” UNRWA spokesperson Louise Wateridge told UN News on Wednesday. “As this military operation has expanded further into Rafah, this has severely, severely restricted our ability and the wider humanitarian ability to provide aid, to provide services and in this case, to distribute food.”
“We now no longer have access to the food distribution centres in this area because of the active military operations, there is no safety and in addition to this, we are receiving no unimpeded access to aid through the crossings.”
Ms. Wateridge stressed that “we have a lot of people on the ground ready to provide aid and provide services, but without access across the borders to any supplies and without access to our distribution centres, we are simply unable to distribute food.”
UN NEWS