Geneva - A leading UN official for humanitarian operations
warned Thursday that the situation in Gaza was deteriorating fast in
a way that undermined potential progress in planned peace talks.
UN Under-Secretary General for humanitarian affairs John Holmes
said aid agencies were 'seriously alarmed' by the 'clear trend of
decreasing access' to Gaza for commercial goods and medical patients
as well as humanitarian aid.
'The squeeze is tightening,' he said speaking at the UN in Geneva.
It was essential to sound the alarm ahead of planned US sponsored
peace talks with Palestinian leaders in Annapolis, Maryland, to lay
the groundwork of a Palestinian state.
'If we look at the situation inside Gaza or even the West Bank it
doesn't look as though that position is getting better. It looks as
if it is getting worse with all the dangers that entails of creating
an isolated and radicalized population,' said Holmes.
'It is hard to see how this kind of position and restrictions on
normal economic activity and access of humanitarian supplies can
contribute to the improvements in the peace process that is
required.'
Israel has drastically reduced access for Palestinians in Gaza
since the takeover by Hamas militants in mid-June and the increase in
rocket attacks into southern Israel.
In July 3,000 trucks were allowed through the limited crossing
points, that fell to 1508 in September. Up to 40 urgent medical cases
had been allowed through every day in July, that had been cut to five
a day in September. Almost 13 per cent of essential drugs were out of
stock.
The imminent threat of increase power cuts and a reduction in fuel
supplies by Israel to Gaza, after the government declared it a
'hostile entity' in September, indicated the situation was only going
to get worse, said Holmes.
He repeated appeals to Israel to ease the restrictions which have
left more than three quarters of the population living in poverty.
Food prices had increased between 10 to 30 per cent while there
were growing shortages of fruit, meat, powdered milk, processed fish
and other essential foods.
Three hospital patients had died in June after being refused exit
visas.
Holmes said it could be called a humanitarian catastrophe in some
ways: 'In terms of a famine we are not there, but in terms of a
serious humanitarian crisis we are there already.'
He appealed to Israel to ease the restrictions and said while
recognizing Israel's legitimate security concerns the threatened
power cuts amounted to 'collective punishment' of the Palestinian
people and was neither the right or most effective response.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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