Head of the UN Humanitarian Affairs Office (OCHA), Andrea De Domenico, told journalists at the UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday in his final briefing after Israeli authorities did not renew his visa that the international community “has to answer the question of how much human suffering can be tolerated in the name of security.”
De Domenico has said that Gaza has become a graveyard for children. He stated that in recent weeks, he has seen more evacuation orders in Gaza, which have created more displacement. He called it worrisome that these orders affected areas Israel had already declared as safe zones.
He told journalists that over 1.9 million people have been displaced in Gaza, but some have been returning to their homes this week, adding that the toll of the war is still increasing, with over 39,000 people in Gaza killed, 91,000 wounded, and 60% of residential buildings destroyed. He also mentioned that the Israeli hostages held in Gaza had been in captivity for 300 days.
“And we will keep on trying to deliver a response to those people in those areas,” he said. “The reality, though, remains that our ability to deliver has never gone up to scale.”
“In this environment we do a lot,” he said. “We provide people with water, food, tents, clothing, hygiene items, nutritional supplements, and cash. We equip hospitals with bed stretchers, medicine, meals and facilities with medical evacuation.”
He added that “all these efforts are nowhere near where they should be in terms of helping people,” emphasizing the need to increase operations.
Humanitarian aid in Gaza
According to the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), Gaza has received 852,721.5 tons of aid, including food, shelter equipment, water, medical supplies, and more.
De Domenico discussed the high levels of food insecurity in Gaza, in spite of the tons of aid that have been sent into the territory, and polio has been discovered in sewage samples.
De Domenico told journalists that since the war began in October, he has seen “the systematic dehumanization of civilians” in both Gaza and the West Bank and “the absolute physical and psychological exhaustion of an entire population.”
He also said that the IDF has become more aggressive and hostile toward aid workers in Gaza and the West Bank.
“We have been systematically stopped at checkpoints and identified. They request the staff to step out of the vehicle, take out the keys. They want to ID every single staff, and it seems that this is, unfortunately, a growing trend,” De Dominico said.
He added that there are now fewer permits and visas for staff from international NGOs in the West Bank.
De Dominico said visas were previously given for a year, however after the war began, they were cut to six and three month visas. He was provided with a one-month extension for his own visa and then was warned that it would not be renewed.
De Dominico cited the publication of the UN Children and Armed Conflict report as the reason for his visa complications, as well as OCHA's reporting.
“But this has been communicated verbally and there is no formal communication that I've received, despite asking repeatedly,” he said.
While speaking at the final briefing to journalists, he also expressed concern over the “growing anger towards Israel,” which could “awaken the dark forces that could fuel antisemitism.” He noted that the UN continues to call for all leaders to speak out against antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, and hate speech, which he said only reinforces stigma and marginalization.
De Dominico added that a UNRWA and UN Children’s Fund program that will provide informal learning to 30,000 children in Gaza is a source of hope for him.