Israel to ban dozens of aid agencies from Gaza as EU warns denial of ‘life-saving aid’ would escalate sufferings

Israel to ban dozens of aid agencies from Gaza as EU warns denial of ‘life-saving aid’ would escalate sufferings
————————-
Israel has announced it will halt operations of dozens of aid organisations working in Gaza within 36 hours for failing to meet stringent new requirements to hand over personal details of Palestinian and international staff deployed in the devastated territory, The Guardian reported.

The list of groups hit by the ban include some of the world’s best known humanitarian organisations such as ActionAid, International Rescue Committee and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

Tuesday’s announcement by the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs comes amid fierce storms that in recent days have destroyed thousands of tents in Gaza, exacerbating an already acute humanitarian crisis.

Foreign ministers of 10 nations expressed “serious concerns” about a “renewed deterioration of the humanitarian situation” in the devastated territory, saying the situation was “catastrophic”.

The statement added that “1.3 million people still require urgent shelter support. More than half of health facilities are only partially functional and face shortages of essential medical equipment and supplies. The total collapse of sanitation infrastructure has left 740,000 people vulnerable to toxic flooding”.

The EU warned Wednesday that Israel’s threat to suspend several aid groups in Gaza from January would block “life-saving” assistance from reaching the population.

Under the 20-point agreement that allowed a fragile ceasefire to come into effect in October, Israel is obliged to allow “full aid” to be “immediately sent into Gaza”.