Gaza aid blockade closes bakeries as evacuation orders, hostilities continue: UN
United Nations: The aid blockade has forced the shuttering of 25 bakeries in Gaza as food supplies shrivel, Israel’s evacuation orders increase and bombardments continue, UN humanitarians said.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the suspension of aid entry into Gaza continues, with a devastating impact on people in need. The 25 bakeries supported by the World Food Programme (WFP) during the ceasefire are all closed due to the shortage of flour and the unavailability of cooking gas, Xinhua news agency reported.
WFP said it continues food distribution with the remaining stocks, but the situation remains very critical since the cargo closure of the crossings almost a month ago.
OCHA warned that Israeli displacement orders continue to force civilians to flee across the Gaza Strip and limit the space available for families to shelter.
On Monday, the office said the latest directive covered nearly the entire Rafah governorate, where about 150,000 people were estimated to be staying. The orders have left civilians exposed to hostilities and deprived them of access to services essential for their survival.
OCHA reported that a complex, week-long rescue operation ended on Sunday with the recovery of 15 bodies of emergency and aid crews in Tal As Sultan in Rafah. An Israeli ground operation started in the governorate on March 23. Efforts to reach and extract causalities had continued since then.
“The available information indicates that the first team was killed by Israeli forces on March 23 and that other emergency and aid crews were struck one after another over several hours as they searched for their missing colleagues,” OCHA said. “They were buried under the sand, alongside their wrecked emergency vehicles, clearly marked ambulances, a fire truck and a UN car.”
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher expressed condolences on Monday to the families of the victims. He said the United Nations demands answers and justice.
At least 408 aid workers have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began on October 7, 2023, according to OCHA.