GENEVA, 1st May, 2025 (WAM) – Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, emphasised that the international law is unequivocal: As the occupying power, Israel must allow humanitarian support in. Aid, and the civilian lives it saves, should never be a bargaining chip.
‘’Two months ago, the Israeli authorities took a deliberate decision to block all aid to Gaza, and halt our efforts to save survivors of their military offensive,'' said Fletcher in a statement released here today.
‘’Blocking aid starves civilians. It leaves them without basic medical support. It strips them of dignity and hope. It inflicts a cruel collective punishment. Blocking aid kills.''
‘’The hostages must be released, now. They should never have been taken from their families,'' he affirmed.
‘’The humanitarian movement is independent, impartial and neutral. We believe that all civilians are equally worthy of protection. We remain ready to save as many lives as we can, despite the risks. But as the UN Secretary-General has made clear, the latest modality proposed by Israeli authorities does not meet the minimum bar for principled humanitarian support.''
To the Israeli authorities, and those who can still reason with them, we say again: lift this brutal blockade. Let humanitarians save lives.