(NewsNation) — Pallets of food, fuel, water and medicine are waiting on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing – just out of reach for 2.3 million Palestinians who need aid as the Israel-Hamas war continues.
The crossing is the only route for aid to enter Gaza directly from outside Israel and the only exit that doesn’t lead to Israeli territory, Reuters reports. As Israel seeks to dismantle Hamas’ military capabilities within Gaza, however, the Rafah crossing remains inoperable, cutting off Palestinians from lifesaving supplies.
A convoy of trucks carrying aid has been waiting for Israel’s signal to enter Gaza through the Rafah border crossing as United Nations agencies warn of a “looming unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.”
“Every hour these supplies remain on the Egyptian side of the border, more girls and boys, women and men, especially those vulnerable or disabled, will die,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.
More than 1 million civilians were told to evacuate their homes in Gaza ahead of significant military activity. About 600,000 have since evacuated the area, but travel in and out of Gaza as a whole is heavily restricted.
Israeli Defense Forces Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus told NewsNation on Monday that Hamas is “trying to keep the people there so they can use them as human shields.”
Air strikes within Gaza, however, have also prevented lifesaving supplies from entering the region through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.
Israel shut all borders to Gaza in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks that ignited the ongoing conflict. Since then, the U.N. hasn’t been able to provide lifesaving aid to Palestinians within Gaza.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met last week with Ghebreyesus and agreed to secure access through the Rafah border.
The crossing, however, has been rendered inoperable by Israeli air strikes on the Gaza side, Reuters reported, citing Egyptian officials.
Both Israel and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken have expressed concern that Hamas would interfere with the aid, delaying its expected delivery on Monday, according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, the WHO says hospitals are overflowing, causing concern about disease outbreaks from mass displacement and poor water and sanitation.
Israel cut off water supplies to Gaza, and with limited fuel for pumps and desalination stations, thousands of hospital patients are at risk, according to the WHO.