GAZA The United Nations warned yesterday in a dire warning that fuel shortages in Gaza have become so acute that they risk stopping vital services and humanitarian operations for over two million people altogether.
Gas is the lifeblood of Gaza. It fuels hospitals, operates water and sanitation, propels ambulances, and powers the transport of food and aid. With dwindling supplies, the breakdown of these essential services grows ever more likely.
“For 2.1 million people, fuel is the backbone of survival. Without it, there is no clean water, no bread, no medical care and no hope,” a UN official said.
Already in dire straits from almost two years of conflict, Gaza’s fuel shortage is deepening food insecurity and bringing communities to the edge of famine. Hospitals are facing shortages of intensive care and maternity unit services, ambulances have ceased operating, and bakeries are closing down.
Humanitarian groups are warning that their activities risk coming to an immediate standstill. Roads are obstructed, telephone networks are down, and garbage is collecting on the streets. Without regular fuel supplies, the threat of disease outbreaks increases exponentially, leaving children, the elderly, and the medically at-risk at even higher risk.
Earlier this week, a small quantity of fuel entered Gaza for the first time in more than four months a move that was greeted with relief by aid agencies. But the UN says it is only a fraction of the quantity required daily to keep critical services running.
“The window for action is narrow,” declared the World Health Organization in a press statement. “Fuel needs to be brought in, in sufficient and consistent amounts, to keep life-saving work going. If it’s not, then humanitarian operations will fail and with them, Gaza’s tenuous grip on survival.”
