Photo credit: Courtesy of the United Nations World Food Programme
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has announced that it is “suspending” the movement of its staff in the Gaza Strip until further notice.
Wednesday’s announcement came after a WFP team came under fire the previous evening (27 August) a few metres from an Israeli checkpoint on the Wadi Gaza Bridge.
The team had returned from a mission in Kerem Shalom/Karam Abu Salem in two WFP armoured vehicles after escorting a truck convoy carrying humanitarian aid into the centre of the Gaza Strip.
The organization’s statement implied that the Israel Defense Forces might have something to do with the attack.
“Although the vehicle was clearly marked and had received multiple permissions from the Israeli authorities to enter, it was directly hit by gunfire on its way to an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) checkpoint.”
The vehicle was struck by at least ten bullets: five on the driver’s side, two on the passenger side and three elsewhere on the vehicle. None of the personnel on board were physically injured.
“Although this was not the first security incident during the war, it is the first time that a WFP vehicle was directly fired upon near a checkpoint, despite obtaining the necessary authorizations in accordance with standard protocol,” the WFP said.
The possibility of a terrorist attack by Hamas was not mentioned. In fact, the name of the terrorist group did not appear once in the announcement.
“The incident is a stark reminder of the accelerating humanitarian space in Gaza, where increasing violence is limiting our ability to deliver life-saving assistance. An already critical situation is being exacerbated by restricted access and increased risks, resulting in increasingly limited food supplies for those in need,” WPF said.
And again without a single mention of the terrorist organization Hamas, which not only opens fire on IDF soldiers every day, but also once again fires rockets at Israeli civilians across the border.
“This is totally unacceptable and the latest in a series of unnecessary security incidents that have put the lives of the WFP team in Gaza at risk,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain.
“As last night’s events show, the current system of conflict prevention is failing and cannot continue. I call on the Israeli authorities and all parties to the conflict to act immediately to ensure the safety of all aid workers in Gaza.”
The WFP noted that humanitarian workers distributing aid in the Gaza Strip are increasingly coming under fire and facing a “multiple challenges”.
No mention of the Hamas terrorists and their allied gangs who regularly hijack the trucks at gunpoint and then loot the supplies.
The organization criticized the ongoing evacuation orders designed to protect civilians while Israeli forces search for terrorists and the hostages they kidnapped in Israel, and cited disruptions in aid deliveries.
Last week, the WFP lost access to its third and final operational camp in central Gaza, while five of the community kitchens operated by the WFP had to be evacuated, the organization said.
Last Sunday, evacuation orders hit WFP’s main site in Deir Al Balah, “forcing our team to relocate for the third time since the war began,” the agency said, ignoring the fact that evacuation orders are designed to protect civilians from entering combat zones.
In its carefully worded statement, the WFP called on “all parties” to “respect international humanitarian law, ensure the protection of humanitarian workers and abide by their obligation to enable the delivery of vital and life-saving assistance.”
