Humanitarian aid in Gaza 'nowhere near' enough to meet urgent needs: UN

​​​​​​​By Merve Aydogan

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) - The UN sounded the alarm Tuesday on inadequate levels of humanitarian aid reaching the Gaza Strip, citing extreme shortages for those in need.

"The level of humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza is nowhere near what we need to support all of the people who desperately need help inside Gaza," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a news conference.

Saying that the World Food Program (WFP) managed to deliver the first aid convoy through Gaza’s new Kissufim crossing, established after months of negotiations, Dujarric said that "the agency delivered 15 trucks carrying food parcels and wheat flour."

"October saw the lowest amount of aid entering Gaza this year. For the second time in a row, WFP was only able to reach half the people who rely on its assistance with reduced rations," he said.

Noting that the situation could improve if the newly established Kissufim border crossing were kept open consistently, Dujarric stated that Israel continues to block aid deliveries.

He highlighted that many in Gaza are hungry, sick and in desperate need of assistance, and he called for the urgent opening of more road crossings into Gaza.

Dujarric stressed that the removal of administrative and physical restrictions on humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza is essential and added that the drop in commercial truck entries has negatively affected market stability.

Asked about expectations related to the opening of the Kissufim border crossing, Dujarric said, "I think we've been burnt with expectations. We want all of the access points to be fully open. We want to have the volume of aid going in that matches the needs right now. That's not the case, so I can only speak about what we would like to see."