‘Acts of war in Gaza showing utter disregard for human life’: heads of 6 UN agencies

Heads of six UN agencies on Monday and warned of the catastrophic toll of Israel's ongoing blockade and military operations in Gaza, saying that the world is "witnessing acts of war that show an utter disregard for human life."

"For over a month, no commercial or humanitarian supplies have entered Gaza," said a joint statement by the heads of Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), World Food Program (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO).

"More than 2.1 million people are trapped, bombed and starved again, while, at crossing points, food, medicine, fuel and shelter supplies are piling up," it said.

The agencies said more than 1,000 children were killed or injured in just the first week after the latest ceasefire broke down — "the highest one-week death toll among children in Gaza in the past year."

The statement also highlighted the collapse of aid efforts, and said: "Just a few days ago, the 25 bakeries supported by the World Food Programme during the ceasefire had to close due to flour and cooking gas shortages."

Describing the humanitarian situation as unprecedented, the UN officials stressed: "We are witnessing acts of war in Gaza that show an utter disregard for human life."

"New Israeli displacement orders have forced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to flee yet again, with no safe place to go," the joint statement said.

It also pushed back against claims that enough aid is entering Gaza, saying: "Assertions that there is now enough food to feed all Palestinians in Gaza are far from the reality on the ground."

At least 408 humanitarian workers, including more than 280 from UNRWA, have been killed since October 2023.

The UN officials urged world governments to act "firmly, urgently and decisively" to uphold humanitarian law. "Protect civilians. Facilitate aid. Release hostages. Renew a ceasefire."