United Nations
The average Gazan is living on two pieces of Arabic bread made from flour the UN had stockpiled in the region, yet the main refrain now being heard in the street is Water, water, the Gaza director for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Friday.
Thomas White, who said he travelled “the length and breadth of Gaza in the last few weeks, described the place as a scene of death and destruction. No place is safe now, he said, and people fear for their lives, their future and their ability to feed their families.
The Palestinian refugee agency, known as UNRWA, is supporting about 89 bakeries across Gaza, aiming to get bread to 1.7 million people, White told diplomats from the UN’s 193 member nations in a video briefing from Gaza. But, he said, now people are beyond looking for bread. It’s looking for water. UN deputy Mideast coordinator Lynn Hastings, who is also the humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, said only one of three water supply lines from Israel is operational.
Many people are relying on brackish or saline ground water, if at all, she said. In the briefing, UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths also said intense negotiations are taking place among authorities from Israel, Egypt, the United States and United Nations on allowing fuel to enter Gaza. Fuel, he said, is essential for the functioning of institutions, hospitals and the distribution of water and electricity. We must allow these supplies reliably, repetitively and dependently into Gaza.
