Israel is directly obstructing humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip, despite the ample availability of aid, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya said at the UNSC meeting.
"It's evident that there's no shortage of aid for Gazans. Council members witnessed this firsthand during last year's visit to the Gaza border. Loaded convoys stand ready to depart for Rafah, yet Israel's stringent measures have thwarted these efforts. Bureaucratic hurdles and outright denials have restricted aid flow to a minimal amount, predominantly reaching only the southern regions," Nebenzya pointed out.
The diplomat observed that humanitarian workers in the northern Palestinian enclave have been forced to decline tasks, including food deliveries, citing concerns over security. "The dire circumstances endured by those residing in this region are beyond imagination," he stressed.
"In light of these challenges, there is no reason for considering the viability of local agriculture. The constant threat of landmines, coupled with environmental degradation of the scant arable land, compounded by a lack of irrigation water, extinguishes any prospect of food self-sufficiency for the people of Gaza," Nebenzya concluded.
Earlier, Maurizio Martina from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported that 378,000 people in the enclave face severe acute food shortages, marked by critical malnutrition and increased mortality rates.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Zuma\TASS
Based on materials from TASS