Messaggi chiave aggiornati da organizzazioni internazionali ed esperti delle Nazioni Unite in relazione alla Guerra a Gaza-2023

Updated key messages from International Organizations and UN experts in relation to the War on Gaza- 2023
❖ Joint statement by UNICEF, WHO, UNFPA and UNRWA on Women and newborns bearing the brunt of the conflict in Gaza:1
∙ Women, children and newborns in Gaza are disproportionately bearing the burden of the escalation of hostilities in the occupied Palestinian territory, both as casualties and in reduced access to health services.
∙ The bombardments, damaged or non-functioning health facilities, massive levels of displacement, collapsing water and electricity supplies as well as restricted access to food and medicines, are severely disrupting maternal, newborn, and child health services.
∙ With 14 hospitals and 45 primary health care centres closed, some women are having to give birth in shelters, in their homes, in the streets amid rubble, or in overwhelmed healthcare facilities, where sanitation is worsening, and the risk of infection and medical complications is on the rise.
∙ Maternal deaths are expected to increase given the lack of access to adequate care. The psychological toll of the hostilities also has direct – and sometimes deadly – consequences on reproductive health, including a rise in stress-induced miscarriages, stillbirths and premature births.
∙ As access to food and water worsens, mothers are struggling to feed and care for their families, increasing risks of malnutrition, disease and death.
∙ The lives of newborns also hang by a thread. If hospitals run out of fuel, the lives of an estimated 130 premature babies who rely on neonatal and intensive care services will be threatened, as incubators and other medical equipment will no longer function.
∙ Humanitarian agencies urgently need sustained and safe access to bring more medicines, food, water and fuel into Gaza. Aid agencies must receive fuel immediately to be able to continue supporting hospitals, water plants and bakeries.
∙ An immediate humanitarian pause is needed to alleviate the suffering and prevent a desperate situation from becoming catastrophic.
❖ World Food Program (WFP):2
∙ “While there has been a steady increase in aid entering Gaza, it is nowhere near enough to meet the exponentially growing needs”.

1Joint statement by UNICEF, WHO, UNFPA and UNRWA on Women and newborns bearing the brunt of the conflict in Gaza, 3 November 2023 https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/joint-statement-unicef-who-unfpa-and-unrwa-women-and-newborns bearing-brunt-conflict.
2Cindy McCain, (WFP) Executive Director, urgent plea for safe, expanded humanitarian access to Gaza as food runs out, 5 November 2023, https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-chief-makes-urgent-plea-safe-expanded-humanitarian-access-gaza-food-runs-out.
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∙ “Right now, parents in Gaza do not know whether they can feed their children today and whether they will even survive to see tomorrow. The suffering just meters away is unfathomable standing on this side of the border”.
∙ “We need to continue to work together to get safe and sustained access to Gaza at a scale that aligns with the catastrophic conditions facing families there”.
∙ “The crisis in Gaza is not just a local tragedy, it’s a stark reminder that our global food crisis is worsening. Not only does this crisis threaten regional peace and stability, it undermines our collective efforts to combat hunger worldwide”.
∙ “Getting humanitarian supplies into Gaza is a matter of life and death”.3
❖ UNFPA:
∙ The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is deepening, as fuel, water, food and life-saving medical supplies run out. The health system is in a state of total collapse.4
∙ UNFPA condemns the violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories and echoes the UN Secretary-General’s call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages by Hamas, and for unimpeded access for humanitarian aid and workers within Gaza.5
∙ “With at least 180 women giving birth daily in Gaza, their and their newborns are facing the worst hours and days of their lives and in every aspect of their lives! We call for immediate ceasefire”.6
❖ UNRWA:7
∙ “This is the third communications blackout over the past 10 days. Gazans are completely cut off from their loved ones and the rest of the world”.
∙ “Across the Gaza Strip, it is a daily struggle to find bread and water”. ∙ “All they were asking for is a sip of water and a piece of bread”.
❖ World Health Organization (WHO):
∙ “Without connectivity, people who need immediate medical attention cannot contact hospitals and ambulances. All channels of communication must be restored immediately”.8
❖ UNICEF:
∙ “Humanitarian aid must reach people I need, wherever they are”.9

3 WFP, on X, 5 November 2023.
4Statement by UNFPA, 3 November 2023, https://www.unfpa.org/crisis-gaza.
5Ibid.
6 UNFPA, on X, 5 November 2023.
7 UNRWA, on X, 5 November 2023.
8 Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, 5 November 2023. 9 UNICEF Palestine, on X, 4 November 2023.
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∙ “UNICEF calls for immediate humanitarian ceasefire and for safe access to deliver urgent aid”.10
∙ “In every war, the ones who suffer the most are the children. Every child, wherever she/he is, deserves peace”.11
∙ “We need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza and the unconditional release of all civilians held hostage. It’s been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now”.12

10 UNICEF Palestine, on X, 5 November 2023.
11 UNICEF Palestine, on X, 6 November 2023.
12Catherine Russell, Executive Director of UNICEF, on X, 6 November 2023.
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