GAZA, December 23, 2008 (WAFA)- No humanitarian aid, fuel or other commodities were able to get into Gaza, Monday, as the crossing points into the Strip remained closed, the United Nations reported.
The Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) also reported that Gaza’s power plant is still not operating due to lack of fuel.
In addition, due to the shortage of wheat grain, all Gaza mills have been shut down, and more than half of Gaza’s 47 bread bakeries have had to close.
At the same time, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reported that shortages of drugs and pharmaceuticals in Gaza are continuing to rise, with some 105 essential drugs now out of stock.
Israel has kept the border crossings into Gaza closed for almost two months now. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has repeatedly called on Israel to urgently permit the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza’s 1.5 million civilians, who are suffering from severe shortages of many basic commodities, while at the same time condemning the rocket attacks.
Mr. Ban has repeatedly called for the continuation of the Egyptian-brokered truce between the Gaza Strip and Israel, that began in June has been announced to be over by Hamas, which has illegally seized control of the Gaza Strip from the West Bank-based Palestinian National Authority in 2007 and which does not recognize Israel’s right to exist.
