How bad is the situation in Gaza right now?
With the increasing bombardment of the Gaza Strip and its blockade by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), a dire humanitarian crisis is rapidly escalating. The IDF strikes come with immeasurable suffering for the Gaza civilians with nowhere to go.
As a result of IDF's ultimatum to move south, more than a million people have been forced to abandon their homes, plunging the 40 km long piece of land into a state of extreme distress. The 40*10 km enclave is home to almost 2.3 million people with closed borders of Egypt and Israel on three sides and the Mediterranean Sea on the remaining.
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As water, electricity, and food supplies dwindle and hospitals move to the brink of collapse, the enclave braces itself for an impending Israeli invasion aimed at eradicating Hamas. For the fifth consecutive day, Gaza has no electricity.
The situation is dire
- The war, which began after Hamas's surprise attack on Israel on October 7, has proved to be the deadliest of the five Israel-Arab/Palestine wars, claiming over 4,000 lives.
- The Gaza Health Ministry reported that 2,670 Palestinians have lost their lives, including a quarter who are children, while 9,600 more are left wounded.
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- Many thousands are still under the ruins and rubble razed by Israeli rocket strikes, reported Al Jazeera.
- According to the United Nations, around 4,00,000 in Gaza are sheltered in UN-run schools and other facilities, which are also on the verge of water and power running out. That's one-fourth of Gaza's population.
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- This congestion, in turn, is creating unsanitary and unbearable living conditions.
- Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA told the Associated Press, that with the shortage of water, essentials like food and medicine are soon to follow, describing Gaza as "strangled."
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Gaza's sole power plant was shut down last week due to the Israeli blockade, further exacerbating the crisis.
- On the Israeli side, over 1,400 have perished, predominantly due to targeted Hamas assault.
- According to AP, Shifa Hospital in Gaza City was forced to bury the dead in mass graves due to morgue overflow.
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- According to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, Israel issued a notice on Saturday instructing the hospitals in the north to evacuate.
- However, the hospitals mentioned their inability to transfer patients who are severely injured, reported Reuters.
- The injured admitted to the hospitals in north Gaza are at the worst receiving end of Israel's ultimatum and the looming ground offensive.
- Ahmed Al-Mandhari, the regional director of the WHO told AP, that most people cannot be evacuated.
Summing the situation up, in Gaza, Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees told AP, “An unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding under our eyes".
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Diplomacy
- The international community is mobilising to address this catastrophe.
- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken just finished his six-country tour across the Arab World to prevent the conflict from spiralling into a broader regional war, reported Reuters.
- Meanwhile, the United States is naming a special envoy for 'Middle East' humanitarian issues, David Satterfield, to focus on providing essential aid to Gaza's population.
- In a CBS interview, US President Joe Biden warned, that the Gaza occupation by Israel would be "a big mistake.” "The overwhelming majority of Palestinians had nothing to do with Hamas' appalling attacks and are suffering as a result of them," Biden added.
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Amid this devastating war, the international community must act swiftly to provide aid and prevent further escalation of this devastating crisis, as what is being done is surely not sufficient and isn't helping the situation either.