UN welcomes launch of aid pier on Gaza shores

The United Nations welcomes the launching of a floating dock in Gaza Strip as well as "any effort towards ensuring humanitarian aid reaches Gaza," said Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary-General. "As such, we are grateful to the United States, as well as to Cyprus, with the support of other Member States, to sustain the maritime corridor as an additional route for aid to Gaza," he said at the Friday noon briefing. "After months of discussions with all relevant authorities, the UN has agreed to support in receiving and arranging for the dispatch of aid into Gaza from the floating dock, as long as it respects the neutrality and independence of humanitarian operations. "Given the immense needs in Gaza, the floating dock is intended to supplement existing land crossings of aid into Gaza, including Rafah, Kerem Shalom (Karm Abu-Salem) and Erez. It is not meant to replace any crossings. "On Friday, the first trucks carrying humanitarian assistance have moved ashore on the floating dock in Gaz a. "This is an ongoing, multinational effort to deliver additional aid to Palestinians in Gaza through a maritime corridor that is entirely humanitarian in nature and will involve aid commodities donated by a number of countries and humanitarian organizations. "Meanwhile, our humanitarian colleagues report that since the military offensive on Rafah began, nearly 640,000 people have been displaced. "Many of those who fled have sought safety in Deir al Balah, which is extremely overcrowded. Conditions there are dire," said Farhan Haq pointed out. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that the ongoing influx of displaced people from Rafah into Deir al Balah -- as well as Khan Younis - continues to strain an already overstretched response. "Our colleagues working on getting food to people in Gaza report that only five bakeries remain operational in all of Gaza -- four in Gaza City and one in Deir al Balah. Nearly a dozen others have ceased operations due to fuel and supply s hortages, amid ongoing hostilities. "These conditions have forced partners to conduct small-scale distributions with limited stocks, providing reduced rations and prioritizing Khan Younis and Deir Al-Balah governorates - where, as we have mentioned, hundreds of thousands of people displaced from Rafah have arrived over the past 10 days. "That ongoing displacement from Rafah to Khan Younis has exacerbated the water and sanitation crisis, with sewage overflow and solid waste spreading across roads, displacement camps and the rubble of destroyed homes - with a catastrophic impact on health. "Our colleagues working on ensuring that people in Gaza have adequate shelter say there are no remaining stocks of shelter materials inside Gaza," he affirmed. Meanwhile, colleagues working on the health response say the movement of emergency medical teams in Gaza is highly constrained due to growing insecurity and access challenges, the deputy spokesperson added. Source: Kuwait News Agency