UN says 'soon many more will die' from Gaza siege
United Nations warned Friday that «many more will die» as a result of Israel's ongoing siege of Gaza, which has also caused sewage to flow into the Palestinian territory's streets.
Israel laid a total siege on Gaza following the October 7 attacks by Hamas, cutting off food, fuel, water and power supplies to the enclave.
"People in Gaza are dying; they are not only dying from bombs and strikes: soon many more will die from the consequences of (the) siege imposed on the Gaza Strip," said Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).
«Basic services are crumbling, medicine is running out, food and water are running out, the streets of Gaza have started overflowing with sewage.»
Alongside the siege, Israel has bombarded Gaza with air and artillery strikes since October 7.
The health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip says the strikes have killed more than 7,300 people, mainly civilians and many of them children.
The strikes are in response to attacks by Hamas gunmen, who poured into Israel and killed around 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped 229 more, according to Israeli officials.
During a press conference in Jerusalem, Lazzarini — who said 57 UNRWA staff had been killed in Gaza during the war — called for more aid to be allowed into the territory immediately.
«The current system in place is geared to fail. What is needed is meaningful and uninterrupted aid flow.
