Muhammet Ikbal Arslan
29 April 2025•Update: 29 April 2025
GENEVA
Juliette Touma, communications director for the UN Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), said Tuesday that "the siege on Gaza is the silent killer of children, of older people."
Speaking online at the UN Office in Geneva at a weekly news briefing, Touma condemned Israel’s humanitarian aid blockade on the Gaza Strip, which has lasted for nearly two months.
"Children in Gaza are going to bed starving. The siege on Gaza is the silent killer of children, of older people," she said.
Touma drew attention to the severe difficulties families are facing in accessing food, noting that more than 5,000 trucks filled with aid are waiting to enter Gaza but are being blocked.
She stressed that Israel’s decision is severely hindering humanitarian efforts and warned that the situation threatens the lives and survival of civilians subjected to daily heavy bombardment.
Touma highlighted the devastating destruction in southern Gaza.
"Rafah is nothing like the city it used to be. … In every direction there is only destruction," she said.
"Today, 97% of Rafah has been impacted by forced displacement orders, which have uprooted around 150,000 people. Almost 12 months ago, the Israeli military moved into Rafah, displacing 1.4 million people and leaving their homes, health facilities and shelters damaged or destroyed," she said.
She underlined that more than 90% of Gaza’s population has been displaced, with some forced to relocate up to 13 times.
Since the war began in late 2023, “more than 50 of the UN agency’s staff have allegedly been 'detained and abused' by the Israeli authorities," she said.
She noted that UNRWA’s financial situation remains "extremely precarious," emphasizing the urgent need for additional funding to ensure the agency’s survival.
Touma said following allegations that some staff were involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, all donors, except the US, have resumed to UNRWA after initially suspending funding in January 2024.
