Defying the fragile ceasefire, Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the Israeli army to advance to take control of 70% of Palestinian territory
A HIM warned, this Friday (29), that the Israel’s plan to take control of 70% of the Gaza Strip It will almost certainly increase the suffering of children, already affected by serious overcrowding problems.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday (28) that he ordered the army to, in defiance of the terms of thewhich came into force in October.
He explained that the army controlled 50% of the territory under the terms of the ceasefire and then moved forward to take control of 60%.
“My guideline is to advance up to 70%,” he said. But the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) warned that this measure would worsen the health crisis among children in the war-torn Palestinian territory, already affected by a lack of food, water and access to hygiene.
Even before the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas against Israel, that sparked the war in Gaza, the territory was already “one of the most densely populated places in the world”, explained Unicef spokesperson Salim Oweis.
Today, “the population is squeezed into 40% of the space they have left, taking refuge among destroyed buildings, rubble and accumulations of solid waste”, he highlighted, adding that “there is no more accessible space to remove this rubbish”.
“The effects are already clearly visible: children with respiratory infections, acute watery diarrhea and more than half of families reporting skin diseases.”
“Fleas, lice and scabies are common,” he added, also highlighting several cases of rat bites on young children and even babies in tents and shelters.
If Israel conquers more territory, it will mean the loss of access to service points and difficult-to-reach areas where families and children live, Oweis explained.
“This will only mean that more children will suffer,” he emphasized.
