One year after the deadliest attack in Israel’s history, war has brought incomprehensible suffering to populations in Gaza and the region. The ongoing regional escalation of violence is creating further human suffering, with war spreading into Lebanon and, to a lesser extent, Syria and Yemen.
The violence continues with impunity, with nearly 42,000 people killed so far in Gaza and over 96,000 people wounded, the vast majority being children and women. A further estimated 20,000 people are either unidentified, missing or buried under the rubble resulting from continued indiscriminate shelling of civilian homes, hospitals, schools, refugee camps, mosques and other buildings. The healthcare in Gaza has been reported to be decimated, with over 500 attacks on healthcare recorded. The continued lack of access to nutrition, clean water and hygiene, adequate shelter and health will likely result in numerous additional deaths. The long-term health and psychological impact on the population is difficult to grasp. More than 280 aid workers, the majority of them staff from UNRWA, have been killed in Gaza. Humanitarian aid is reported to continue to face serious access restrictions. Furthermore, the violence and arbitrary arrests of the Palestinians in the West Bank continue. These are just some of the multiple clear violations of International Humanitarian Law in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Despite the media broadcasting this unprecedented human suffering live to the world and the recent UN General Assembly resolution demanding the implementation of the recommendations of the International Court of Justice, the powers that could end this do not seem to take notice.
Worse still, we are now witnessing a major regional military escalation. The death toll in Lebanon has already exceeded 2,000, while over 9,500 people are injured. According to the Lebanese government, 1.2 million people are estimated to have fled their homes to save their lives from heavy bombardments. The ground invasion is creating further risk for the civilians. The psychological impact on the population that has suffered so many challenges over the past decades is immeasurable.
“For a year now, we have seen civilians injured, killed and terrorised in a spiral of violence that continues to spread and affect more and more innocent people. States must agree to a sustainable resolution of this regional conflict through an immediate ceasefire in order to protect civilians and stop the cycle of destruction and devastation”, remarks Valentina Corona, Head of Mission of INTERSOS in Lebanon.
INTERSOS remains committed to intervening in its capacities, as we are doing now in Lebanon, where we are currently providing emergency cash assistance for protection, non-food items and dignity kits, as well as supporting displaced populations in collective shelters.
The ongoing escalation impacting the region is already having a dramatic and intolerable impact on civilians, and the spiralling of this escalation must be stopped now. It is high time for all states to reaffirm their commitment to respect the IHL. Civilians, civilian infrastructure and humanitarian workers must be protected. All hostages must be released unconditionally. Violence must stop immediately. An immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon must be agreed upon.
#ceasefirenow