UN warns of Israeli delays in Gaza aid coordination waste 'precious time'

By Merve Aydogan

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) — The UN on Tuesday reported significant delays and obstructions in coordinating humanitarian missions in the Gaza Strip, warning that Israeli security clearances are wasting "precious time" critical to aid delivery.

"Yesterday, on Monday, we requested to coordinate with the Israeli security services 16 missions, including the collection of food, medical supplies, and fuel from the two operational crossings, Kareem Shalom and Zikim," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a news conference.

Of those 16 missions, he said, four were facilitated, three denied, and another four were impeded but eventually fully accomplished.

He also noted that two missions were cancelled by their organizations, while others involving food and health supplies were impeded or remain ongoing.

"Efforts to coordinate humanitarian movements often drag on for hours due to the unpredictable clearances by the Israeli authorities, wasting precious time," Dujarric said.

He also expressed concern about displacement in the occupied West Bank, where illegal Israeli settlers, protected by Israeli forces, frequently attacked Palestinian Bedouin in the Ramallah governorate, prompting the eviction of approximately 100 residents.

Citing the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), he added that "a lot of the evacuated residents have no alternative shelter."

Since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, at least 1,013 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in the West Bank by Israeli forces and illegal settlers, according to the Health Ministry.

In an advisory opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.