UN agencies warn Israel plans for aid distribution endanger lives in Gaza

Geneva: International aid agencies warned on Friday that plans presented by Israel to control aid distribution in Gaza, including a US-backed proposal, will only increase suffering and death in the devastated Palestinian territory, which has been under a total Israeli blockade for nearly 10 weeks. They urged Israel to lift its ban on all food, medicine and other supplies entering Gaza, which has caused a surge of malnutrition and hunger among Palestinians as supplies rapidly dwindle.

“Humanitarian aid should never be used as a bargaining chip,” UNICEF spokesperson James Elder said in Geneva.

The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said that a new system for delivering humanitarian aid and food to Gaza was being launched, with deliveries set to begin “very soon.”

He said that details would be announced in the coming days. He depicted it as independent from Israel, which he said wouldn’t be involved in distribution. He said that private companies would provide security, while Israel’s military would secure the perimeters of aid areas from afar.

“I will be the first to admit it will not be perfect, especially in the early days,” Huckabee said.

A new US-backed group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has put forward an aid distribution plan along the lines of Israel’s demands, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. The group is made up of American security contractors, former government officials, ex-military officers and humanitarian officials.

It wasn’t immediately clear if this was the plan that Huckabee was referring to. But aid workers have said the creation of the group does little to assuage their concerns.

The UN has rejected Israeli plans to control aid.

Israel has spoken for weeks of imposing a new aid system in Gaza, but has given no details publicly. The United Nations and most aid groups, which have led the aid operation in Gaza since the war began, have refused to participate, saying the details provided by Israel in private discussions violate humanitarian principles.

They say that the plans floated by Israel centre on creating a limited number of distribution hubs inside Gaza to which Palestinians would have to come to receive food — armed security companies would transport the aid and guard the hubs. Israel also wants to vet recipients of the help, aid workers say.

Elder, of UNICEF, said that the plan as presented to the aid community appeared “designed to reinforce control over life-sustaining items as a pressure tactic.” He said that it doesn’t comply with Israel’s obligations to allow and facilitate impartial humanitarian relief.