The trickle of relief supplies into Gaza increased slightly yesterday with 33 more trucks entering through the Rafah gate from Egypt but, the Associated Press reported, humanitarian workers said the assistance still fell desperately short of needs after thousands of people broke into warehouses to take flour and basic hygiene products. The aid warehouse break-ins were “a worrying sign that civil order is starting to break down after three weeks of war and a tight siege on Gaza,” said Thomas White, Gaza director for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). “People are scared, frustrated and desperate.”
UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma said the crowds broke into four facilities on Oct. 28. She said the warehouses did not contain any fuel, which has been in critically short supply since Israel cut off all shipments after the start of the war. One warehouse held 80 tons of food, the UN World Food Program said. It emphasized that at least 40 of its trucks need to cross into Gaza daily just to meet growing food needs.
Elad Goren, the head of civil affairs of COGAT, the Israeli defense body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, announced on Oct. 29 that two of three pipelines supplying water to Gaza had been turned on and claimed that Israel had established a “humanitarian zone” near the southern city of Khan Younis and recommended that Palestinians flee there.
