Ahead of 100 Days of Hamas-Israel War, WHO Director General Highlights Lack of Access to Humanitarian Aid to Gaza

A Palestinian family sat in the rubble of their home in Gaza (Source: WFP/Ali Jadallah)

JAKARTA - Lack of access to the Gaza Strip makes it difficult for humanitarian aid to reach the Palestinian enclave, said the head of the world health agency.

Calling the new year 2024 not a happy moment, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the conflict situation in Gaza was indescribable, as the war will enter its 100th day this week.

In Gaza, "people have to queue for hours to get a little water, which may not be clean, or bread, which is not nutritious enough. Only 15 hospitals are functioning, even partially," said Tedros, reported by CNN, January 11.

"Delivering humanitarian aid in Gaza continues to face almost insurmountable challenges. Intense bombing, movement restrictions, fuel shortages and communication breakdowns make it impossible for WHO and our partners to reach those in need," he explained.

"We have supplies, teams and plans ready. What we don't have is access," stressed Tedros.

Meanwhile, WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territories, Dr. Richard Peeperkorn said disruptions to health services and water sanitation systems, food and water shortages and large numbers of people fleeing in winter were "causes of disease."

Meanwhile, Dr. Teresa Zakaria, incident manager for escalating violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, said the agency's surveillance systems captured disease manifestations, but they could not verify the bacteria, parasites or viruses causing the illnesses.

"We have seen an increase in reports of acute respiratory infections, diarrheal diseases, and jaundice. But again, these are just manifestations of various diseases and we cannot investigate them because we are not in a position to carry out tests, collect samples, and carry out tests," she explained.

"We don't know what we're dealing with," she said, adding, "There are many diseases that can actually spread undetected and this is very concerning because by the time we do find out, they will have spread throughout the world. which is so late that it will be very difficult to hold back."

As previously reported, WHO for the sixth time canceled its humanitarian aid mission to northern Gaza since December 26, "because our request was rejected and guarantees of safe passage were not given," said the WHO Director General.

A mission scheduled for today to a hospital important for maternal and child health was also cancelled, according to Peeperkorn.

"We hope and ask that we get confirmation that tomorrow's mission to hospitals in the north is approved," Peeperkorn added.

It is known that the war in Gaza broke out after the Palestinian militant group Hamas invaded Israel's southern region on October 7. Today, the war in the region has entered its 97th day.