UN Rights Chief Condemns Deteriorating Conditions in Gaza Amid Intensified Israeli Airstrikes
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, expressed deep distress on Sunday over the rapidly deteriorating conditions in the Gaza Strip as Israeli forces continue to intensify airstrikes in the northern part of the Palestinian enclave, Anadolu Agency reported yesterday.
In a statement from Geneva, Turk said he has repeatedly raised alarm about the catastrophic impact a potential full-scale offensive on Rafah could have. He called on Israel and Palestinian armed groups to urgently agree to a ceasefire and release all hostages immediately.
Turk said he was “deeply distressed” by the worsening situation in the besieged Gaza, noting that Israeli airstrikes have targeted the areas of Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya, and parts of central Gaza. He also expressed concern over reports of indiscriminate rocket fire from Gaza.
The UN rights chief stated that since May 6, when the Israeli Defense Forces ordered further evacuations from the southern city of Rafah, more than 278,000 people have been displaced, including those with disabilities, the chronically ill, older people, the injured, and pregnant women.
Turk warned that there is “no safe place in Gaza” for these “exhausted, famished people,” many of whom have been displaced multiple times already.
He called on all states with influence to do everything in their power to prevent a full-scale offensive on Rafah, which he said “cannot take place.”
Israel’s chokehold on aid and fuel hindrances has disrupted everything from transportation to the distribution of food, operation of hospitals and emergency services, sewage treatment, and telecommunications.
Over 35,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have died since while nearly 78,600 have been wounded, according to Gazan health authorities.
