Action contre la Faim intensifies its efforts to save lives in gaza as humanitarian aid still fails to arrive

Saving the lives of people, especially babies, in Gaza has become a race against time.

“Currently, only six days have been authorized for the entry of trucks with humanitarian aid, without allowing NGOs to load essential supplies,” says Action Against Hunger’s head of Middle East operations, Natalia Anguera, who continues: “Flour has come in and some bakeries in the south have resumed operations, which is a vital step forward in combating malnutrition among children and pregnant or breastfeeding women, but specific nutritional supplies reserves for children under five are about to run out in the same area.” Even if bakeries now have flour, the lack of fuel, energy, and safe water supplies prevents these facilities from being fully operational.  Our teams on the ground report that there are less than seven days’ supply of therapeutic food (RUTF based on peanut paste), essential to prevent acute malnutrition in children aged 6 months to 5 years, in southern Gaza and 10 days in the north. There is still a lack of gas and continuous power cuts. Families can barely cook, except by burning leftovers in the streets, and a 1kg canister of gas costs $200, a price that is completely unaffordable for any family.

The entry of chlorine for water purification remains unauthorized. Our water trucking is critically dependent on the availability of petrol, which is also in short supply. 

How we are working to save children’s lives in Gaza

The latest UN analysis, in which Action Against Hunger is involved, is stark: 71,000 cases of acute malnutrition are expected among children under five, of whom 14,100 could die if they do not receive urgent assistance. In the face of this unprecedented humanitarian emergency, our teams on the ground are pouring all available resources into protecting children and their mothers.
The situation is dramatic, and the urgency is paramount. As one of our breastfeeding counsellors in Gaza tells us: “Every visit confirms my worst fears: there is no end to this crisis. The situation is becoming increasingly catastrophic and the acute shortage of aid and assistance is becoming more and more alarming”.
At Action Against Hunger, we are developing essential programmes to prevent and treat malnutrition. We distribute nutritional supplements to children aged 6-59 months, as well as pregnant and lactating women, to strengthen their health and avoid malnutrition. We provide specific care for those who already suffer malnutrition, tailoring treatments to individual needs. For babies aged 6-23 months, we provide safe and appropriate complementary foods, essential for their development in an environment where there are few viable alternatives. Early detection is key: we assess children and women by measuring their arm circumference, a simple but vital technique for early action.
We also implement our specific programme for pregnant or breastfeeding women who are already suffering from malnutrition, offering a nutritional reinforcement adapted to their needs. In addition, we care for and treat children who are acutely malnourished, both severely and moderately.

Our teams on the ground: between commitment and constant threat

Despite the enormous difficulties on the ground, Action Against Hunger has not interrupted its operations in Gaza and our teams remain fully committed to continuing to provide assistance to the population. 
Our staff remain active where access and security are allowed. However, our capacity to respond can be severely constrained not only by the shortage of authorizations for the entry of humanitarian aid, but also by the increasingly deteriorating conditions in the Strip, which affect both security and the effective distribution of assistance. 
Despite growing insecurity, we continue to analyze all the possible ways to implement life-saving humanitarian aid where access and security allow. However, on some occasions where it’s impossible to implement, we direct to other safer locations. It is therefore urgent that organizations working on the ground have secure and stable humanitarian channels to ensure the continuous flow of aid to the civilian population. 
Gaza is now the most dangerous place in the world for humanitarian workers. Seventy per cent of the territory is considered an evacuation or exclusion zone, and more than 423,000 people have been displaced since 18 March. Evacuation orders are constant, and daily life has become unbearable.

Obstacles to humanitarian access continue

Action Against Hunger currently has more than hundred pallets of food aid pre-positioned in Amman, Jordan. According to the current indications, all humanitarian aid can only come from the Port of Ashdod (Israel), where UN and the INGOs have stored only 21% of the available pallets. Current entry of aid is only limited to a few agencies. All cargo coming into Gaza must be pre-approved through the UN2720 Mechanism, which applies to both the Egypt and Jordan corridors. This means that more than 260,000 pallets of aid are blocked, ready to leave via the Jordan and Egypt-Rafah corridors, but without authorization.