80% of Palestinians in Gaza Strip face food shortage

The Government Media Office in Gaza has reported that 80 per cent of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip lack regular access to food, confirming that the enclave is experiencing a famine. Meanwhile, the Gaza Municipality warned of the danger of cutting off energy, fuel and water supplies due to the Israeli army’s continued closure of the border crossings.

The media office confirmed on Sunday that the Gaza Strip is suffering from a shortage of everything 15 days after the entry of aid was halted. The office called on mediators to act to stop the Israeli occupation’s illegal collective punishment of more than two million people.

In early March, the Israeli army closed all crossings leading to Gaza to prevent the entry of humanitarian aid, after it violated the ceasefire agreement in the Strip, amid American disregard and international silence.

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The occupation regime — which totally disregards its obligations as the occupying power — has also stopped the entry of the energy sources and fuel needed to operate essential services and facilities and has threatened that the water company Mekorot will stop pumping water. The municipality stressed that the continuation of these arbitrary measures threatens to exacerbate the situation and disrupt life and water supplies in the city.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the municipality emphasised that halting energy supplies threatens to paralyse the operation of water and sanitation facilities and other services, thus worsening the humanitarian and health disaster that the city is experiencing due to the occupation’s actions and aggression.

The Gaza Municipality added that the occupation regime’s threat to halt the Mekorot water pipeline, which currently supplies the city with approximately 70 per cent of its daily needs, threatens an even worse crisis. It called on international organisations to intervene and put pressure on the regime.

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