Othman Moqbel, Chief Executive Officer of Action For Humanity, says that Israel’s blockade of Gaza aid is a flagrant breach of international law and an act of inhumanity.
Following Israel’s decision to halt humanitarian aid into Gaza, Action For Humanity, one of the leading NGOs working in Gaza, issued a statement, saying that “Israel’s brutal genocide in Gaza has created an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, with almost universal dependency on aid for survival. Now, by halting humanitarian aid, they are deliberately starving a population that they have already brought to the brink of famine. This is beyond cruelty; it is calculated, systematic, and in direct violation of international law.
“The blockade of aid is a breach of International Humanitarian Law, including Article 23 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which mandates free passage of essential humanitarian supplies. It also violates international human rights law, including Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which guarantees the right to food.
“Israel is playing chess with the lives of innocent Palestinians, showing a callous disregard for humanity. Their actions have led the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) to declare this the worst hunger crisis in their history, yet they respond by further depriving the people of Gaza of the very aid they now rely on to survive. This is not just inhumane; it is mass torture.
“As an aid organisation, we are facing unprecedented challenges. Israel is not only killing humanitarian workers but actively criminalising them in the Knesset. The United States is freezing crucial funding, and the UK government is slashing its aid budget. Never before has the vital work of NGOs been more necessary or more difficult.
“We urge the international community to act immediately. We call on the public to donate whatever they can to support lifesaving aid efforts, to write to their policymakers, and to demand an end to the deliberate starvation of a population for political gain. Every second of inaction costs more innocent lives. The world must not stand by in silence.”