GENEVA, 20th May, 2025 (WAM) -- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has called for the immediate opening of crossings and the sufficient delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
The agency stressed the need to maintain pressure on Israel to enable humanitarian organisations to operate freely and not to choke off relief bound for Gaza.
Louise Wateridge, spokesperson for UNRWA, said during a video briefing with journalists in Geneva that there are large quantities of aid in the agency’s warehouses. She emphasised that Gaza urgently needs unrestricted and uninterrupted support to help halt the spread of hunger.
Dr. Akihiro Seita, Director of Health at UNRWA, said the primary concern is the risk of famine in Gaza spiralling out of control. He added that it is unacceptable to witness a total absence of life in the area.
He noted that the agency holds a significant stockpile of medicines and other relief supplies and has volunteer doctors ready to deploy, but Israel is preventing their entry.
Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that of nine aid trucks scheduled to enter Gaza yesterday, only five were allowed in. He anticipated that 100 trucks would be able to access Gaza today.
Meanwhile, Dr Rik Peeperkorn, World Health Organization Representative in the occupied Palestinian territory, said that violent hostilities in Gaza since 15th May have claimed many lives and displaced more than 34,000 people once again.
Peeperkorn stated that the psychological toll of the war in Gaza is beyond description and will have a lifelong impact on many individuals. He reiterated the World Health Organization’s call for a ceasefire.