Over 100 aid and human rights groups warn ‘mass starvation’ spreading in Gaza

More than 100 aid organizations and human rights groups warned on Wednesday that “mass starvation” was spreading in Gaza.

A statement with 111 signatories, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Save the Children and Oxfam, warns that “our colleagues and those we serve are wasting away.”

The groups call for an immediate negotiated ceasefire, the opening of all land crossings and the free flow of aid through United Nations-led mechanisms.

Even after Israel began easing a more than two-month aid blockade in late May, Gaza’s population is still suffering extreme scarcities.

Israel says humanitarian aid is being allowed into Gaza and accuses Hamas of exploiting civilian suffering, including by stealing food handouts to sell at inflated prices or shooting at those awaiting aid.

It also accuses UN organizations of not properly distributing aid, noting hundreds of trucks are awaiting collection on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom border crossing.

The controversial US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said in a statement that the UN, which refuses to work with it, “has a capacity and operational problem” and called for “more collaboration” to deliver life-saving aid.

In their statement, the humanitarian organizations say warehouses with tons of supplies were sitting untouched just outside the territory, and even inside, as they were blocked from delivering the goods.

“Palestinians are trapped in a cycle of hope and heartbreak, waiting for assistance and ceasefires, only to wake up to worsening conditions,” the signatories say.

“It is not just physical torment, but psychological. Survival is dangled like a mirage,” they add.

“The humanitarian system cannot run on false promises. Humanitarians cannot operate on shifting timelines or wait for political commitments that fail to deliver access.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.