GENEVA (AFP)--A three-hour pause in fighting by Israeli forces is insufficient and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is worsening by the hour, a U.N. aid agency said Thursday.
Christopher Gunness, a spokesman for the U.N. agency assisting Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said the 1.5 million Palestinians in the territory were in a "critical" situation.
About 1 million people in the Gaza Strip are without power supplies, 750,000 without water, while hospitals are still functioning on generators.
Gunness said food stocks were just enough for several days rather than weeks, especially with the closure of the Karni crossing from Israel to the Gaza Strip which is designated for deliveries of bulk food.
"The humanitarian crisis is deepening with each hour," he told journalists at a joint briefing by U.N. relief agencies here on the conflict in the Gaza Strip.
The daily lull implemented by Israeli forces was "not enough", he said.
Gunness said the humanitarian corridors proposed by the Israeli military still had to be set up properly, with military traffic hampering aid deliveries or attempts by Gazans to fetch supplies.
"The situation is very volatile and dangerous for our workers," he said.
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Publié le 08 janvier 2009 Copyright © 2009 Dowjones