PRCS Raises the Alarm at the Deepening Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) expresses alarm and concern as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens with the continued violence, rising number of casualties among Palestinian civilians including children and women, and the blockade of the border crossings in and out of Gaza for four consecutive days.

The civilian population in Gaza, including children, continue to be traumatized by the indiscriminate and disproportionate bombardment of civilian targets. The bombardment resulted in 31 deaths including 6 children and 3 women, and the injury of 106 civilians including 32 children and 17 women.

PRCS and other health and humanitarian organizations are facing a shortage of fuel, medicine, and medical supplies, which are critical for the provision of life-saving services and for the continued operation of hospitals. Furthermore, PRCS is gravely concerned as hundreds of civilian patients who need critical medical services outside of Gaza are prevented from leaving.

Israel, the Occupying power, must be held responsible, and the international community must take concrete action to ensure the protection of civilians and end Israel’s impunity. In Gaza and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), generations of Palestinians including children are subjugated to oppression, discrimination, and the denial of civil and national rights- throughout the longest military occupation of modern times.

PRCS calls for an immediate end to hostilities and the end of the 16-year siege of Gaza. PRCS further calls for addressing the root causes of this ongoing conflict by ending the almost 6-decade- long Israeli military occupation.