NYN | Reports and Analyses
International condemnation and human rights actions are intensifying in response to what many are calling “genocidal crimes” and Israel’s systematic starvation policy against the population of the Gaza Strip.
Irish President Michael D. Higgins expressed his shock at what he described as the “massive destruction” inflicted on the Palestinian people, stating:
“Are we going to keep watching children starve and women suffer from dehydration as they try to feed their children? Something must happen now.”
Higgins called on the UN Secretary-General to activate Chapter VII of the UN Charter against Israel, describing its actions as a threat to international peace and security.
Belgium’s Foreign Minister confirmed Brussels’ support for the proposal to suspend Israel’s participation in the European scientific research program, should the Danish presidency secure a majority, noting that it would mark the first concrete European sanction.
He also stressed that airdrops of aid into Gaza are “insufficient” and that what is truly needed is the full, unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid.
Jan Egeland, Secretary-General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, stated that Israel is “violating international law on a daily basis” in Gaza and predicted that Norwegian investments would soon be withdrawn from Israeli companies involved in these violations. He added:
“Opening the crossings and allowing massive aid in is the only solution to address the famine. Israel cannot be allowed to control what civilians receive.”
An Oxfam media officer warned that the starvation policy in Gaza is affecting even medical staff. She noted that the destruction of farmland and water deprivation policies have worsened food shortages and the spread of disease, with most residents now living in tattered tents after losing their homes.
A report from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) revealed that 4 in every 10 pregnant or breastfeeding women in Gaza are suffering from acute malnutrition, and 1 in every 7 newborns requires intensive care to survive, amid the near-total collapse of the healthcare system.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stressed that saving lives in Gaza must be everyone’s top priority, describing the scenes of starvation as “painful and unbearable.”
UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Michael Fakhri, stated that Israel has built “the most efficient starvation machine imaginable,” asserting that these practices constitute a well-documented war crime.
In an unprecedented move, more than 100 journalists, correspondents, and war photographers from around the world signed a petition under the initiative “The Right to Report”, calling for the immediate and unmonitored entry of foreign journalists into Gaza to independently document the events on the ground.
The signatories — including high-profile names like Christiane Amanpour, Alex Crawford, and Mehdi Hasan — stressed that banning media coverage is a blatant violation of the public’s right to know.
And the urgent humanitarian and political question remains:
How much longer will civilians in Gaza remain under siege and starvation while the world watches the catastrophe unfold from a distance?
