UN Agency Halts Aid Shipments via Key Gaza Crossing Due to Security Concerns

The principal United Nations agency assisting Palestinians has announced a suspension of its aid deliveries through the main transit point connecting Israel and Gaza, citing security concerns. Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner-general of Unrwa, stated that armed gangs had plundered two recent convoys near the Kerem Shalom crossing and called upon Israel to uphold law and order. Israel has previously asserted that it facilitates the passage of aid into Gaza and has accused Hamas of hijacking and stealing deliveries. The Kerem Shalom crossing serves as the primary conduit for humanitarian assistance destined for the over two million residents of Gaza, a population that the UN has cautioned is facing imminent famine. In recent weeks, there has been an escalation of violent thefts perpetrated by criminal groups, which aid personnel have identified as the primary impediment to the dissemination of provisions. On 16 November, masked individuals assaulted a convoy comprising 109 lorries laden with food, holding the drivers at gunpoint before absconding with 97 of the vehicles. Subsequently, a well-known criminal family in Gaza obstructed the principal thoroughfare departing from Kerem Shalom for two days, by erecting iron barriers and allegedly discharging firearms at lorries attempting to reach an aid distribution point. Humanitarian workers and local residents have additionally claimed that armed individuals operate visibly to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) within a restricted area along the Israel-Gaza border. In his announcement of the delivery pause, Mr. Lazzarini stated that the route extending from the crossing “has not been safe for months,” referencing the theft of five additional lorries on Saturday and the previous month’s incident. This declaration also came after an Israeli strike on Saturday resulted in the deaths of three employees of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a food charity, and two other individuals. Israel indicated that the strike’s target was a WCK employee involved in the 7 October attacks. “The delivery of humanitarian aid must never be dangerous or turn into an ordeal,” Mr. Lazzarini said. He further asserted that a “breakdown of law and order” had occurred, and that Israel bore the responsibility for safeguarding aid workers. “They must ensure aid flows into Gaza safely and must refrain from attacks on humanitarian workers,” he said. In recent months, Israel has established several additional crossings into central and northern Gaza in response to international calls for an increased flow of humanitarian assistance; however, Kerem Shalom continues to be the primary entry point for the majority of aid reaching Gaza. During an address at the UN in September, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu affirmed that his government was permitting the entry of “more than 3,000 calories a day for every man, woman, and child” into Gaza. He alleged that Hamas was pilfering aid shipments and selling food at exorbitant prices to sustain its control within the strip. In response to Unrwa’s declaration, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, the body responsible for overseeing the Israeli government’s civilian policy in Gaza, stated that other humanitarian organizations were providing assistance. “We will continue to work with the international community to increase the amount of aid making its way into Gaza, through the Kerem Shalom Crossing as well as the other four crossings between Israel and Gaza,” it said. A review conducted last month by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, an initiative managed by the UN and a consortium of international charities, indicated that the volume of aid shipments entering Gaza was at its lowest point since the commencement of the current conflict in October 2023. The review cautioned that the “humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip [was] extremely grave and rapidly deteriorating,” and further noted that, under a “reasonable worst-case scenario, a risk of famine existed for the whole of the Gaza Strip.” It concluded that “immediate action [was] required from all actors who are directly taking part in the conflict, or have influence on its conduct, to avert and alleviate this catastrophic situation.”