UNOCHA: Gaza Still Facing "A Protracted Human Dignity Crisis"

With the Israeli siege on Gaza now in its third year, one million refugees regularly lack power and water, unemployment is rife, and thousands are living in tents or the rubble of their former homes. Any hopes for reconstruction have been stymied by the siege. UNRWA has reported that "not one penny" of the billions pledged for reconstruction has reached Gaza. Even modest repairs to schools, factories and roads have been prohibited as Israel refuses to allow construction materials into the strip. Earlier this year, it took the intervention of US Senator John Kerry for Israel revoke its ban on shipments of lentil and pasta entering Gaza.

A report released this month by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) describes the "protracted human dignity crisis" in the Gaza Strip. It found that as a result of the siege, 95% of industrial establishments in Gaza have been forced to shut down, and the remaining 5% were forced to reduce their level of activity. The widespread destruction incurred during "Cast Lead" only served to exacerbate this problem. An ICRC survey from May last year, prior to the Christmas attacks, found that 70% of Gazans were living on less than one dollar a day, and 40% were living on less than 0.5 dollars a day. This is in a community that lies a matter of kilometers from Tel Aviv, which boasts the second biggest city economy in the Middle East.

Palestine Monitor reported last year on the phenomenon of "stunted growth" affecting Gaza’s children. Already in 2007, prior to the tightening of the blockade, stunted growth - a permanent effect of malnutrition - was affecting 13.2% of Gazan children. A World Vision report from December 2008 - prior to Operation Cast Lead - found that this figure had jumped to 27% in eighteen months, physically demonstrating the impact of Israel’s siege. According to UN development maps, stunted growth in the region should affect less than 2% of children - and this is the reality in Israel. This is not a condition which can be reversed quickly: more than half of Gaza’s population - 53% - is under the age of 18, so this siege will have consequences for many years to come.

Operation Cast Lead had devastating consequences for mothers: during the 23 days of attacks, the number of miscarriages increased by 31%, and neo-natal deaths by 50%. Women who gave birth during the attacks were discharged from hospital 30 minutes later. Today the situation is not much better: mothers stay an average of two hours in Gaza’s hospitals after giving birth due to a lack of beds, according to a recent World Health Organization report. Further, 10 types of medication essential for maternal care are currently out of stock.

Since the tightening of the siege in June 2007, hospitals in Gaza have been unable to expand to cater for the growing population. The blockade has prevented the rebuilding of health facilities lost during Operation Cast Lead. The lack of fuel for the Gaza power plant has forced hospitals to rely exclusively on back-up generators, which are not intended for prolonged use and are often damaged. The replacement parts needed to fix them cannot be brought in. Hospitals try to use Uninterruptible Power Supply devices to reduce the risk of power cuts on sensitive medical equipment; however, these rely on batteries. Israeli authorities do not allow batteries into Gaza, so hundreds of these units are out of use. Similarly, diagnostic devices such as x-ray machines are not allowed in. Medical technicians are not allowed in to maintain equipment, and Gazans are not allowed out to receive training to do it themselves. UNOCHA reports that the impact of this "learning freeze" on all staff in a constantly evolving discipline such as medicine "cannot be understated".

The UN, the ICRC, countless states and humanitarian organizations have repeatedly called on the government of Israel to cease the collective punishment of the entire Gazan population. Gazans have endured the extreme summer heat, often without water or refrigerators, many in tents or the rubble of their former houses. UNOCHA reports that for Gazans, a growing sense of being trapped is coupled with the exhaustion of coping mechanisms. Although the dramatic bombardment of Operation Cast Lead is over, as Gazans face their third winter under siege it is imperative that international attention remains on Gaza, and that Israel allows the generous donations of the international community to reach Gazans.