The Feminist Humanitarian Network is horrified by Israel’s plans to invade Rafah
The Feminist Humanitarian Network is horrified by Israel’s plans to launch a ground invasion in Rafah and by the heavy bombardment the area suffered over the weekend. Attacking an area where 1.5 million people are taking refuge is a flagrant violation of international law and will compound an already catastrophic humanitarian crisis.
It is less than three weeks since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered provisional measures to prevent a genocide against the Palestinian people. Yet despite the ICJ’s order, and in breach of the Genocide Convention, the violence against civilians in Gaza has continued. Nearly 2,000 further people have been killed since the ICJ order, and access to medical supplies, food and clean water remains drastically inadequate.
Attacks on Rafah will bring the delivery of humanitarian assistance to a standstill, exacerbating a humanitarian crisis so severe that many humanitarians have described the situation as ‘unprecedented’, ‘a nightmare’, and the UN Human Rights High Commissioner, Volker Türk: ‘apocalyptic.’
Rafah is the sole humanitarian access point in Gaza - it is a lifeline for the entire population. At least 1.5 million people are currently displaced there after being told that it was a ‘safe zone’. Most people in Rafah have been forced to leave their homes and move multiple times already. They are tired, scared and are now crammed into overcrowded makeshift shelters or living on the streets. The entire population is facing starvation. Infectious diseases are rife, there is no access to hygiene facilities or clean water, and only a fraction of overwhelmed hospitals remain.
As always, it is women and girls who are bearing the brunt. Over 28,000 people have been killed, 70% of them women and children. Two mothers are being killed every hour and one child is killed every 10 minutes. We have seen women undergo c-sections, and children undergo amputations without anesthesia or pain relief. Gaza’s two women’s shelters have been forced to close - putting women at a heightened risk of GBV, and continued communications blackouts have cut them off from even remote support. Pregnant and breastfeeding women are dangerously malnourished, menstrual hygiene supplies are inaccessible, and thousands of women left widowed, now bear the sole responsibility for providing food for their children, and keeping them safe in these horrific conditions. This must stop. We need a permanent ceasefire now.
Frontline responders and humanitarians around the world have stated that it is impossible for people to follow Israel's evacuation orders – there is nowhere to go. Nowhere in Gaza is safe. People in Rafah must be protected.
We urge world leaders to make every intervention possible to stop attacks on Rafah, and again demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire. Funding to UNRWA must be immediately reinstated and we must also see increased funding to organizations representing the rights of women and girls in Gaza and the West Bank to begin to repair the egregious damage caused. These actions must be taken now to save lives.
The entire population of Gaza is dependent on UNRWA for their survival. The agency has stated that if donors do withdraw financial contributions, they will not be able to continue operations beyond February - a scenario many humanitarian agencies have stated is tantamount to a death sentence.
The World Health Organization has warned that without urgent intervention, within weeks we will see tens of thousands of children die from wasting and the death toll from starvation and infectious disease climb well beyond the current horrifying figures.
Over 100,000 people in Gaza have now been killed, wounded or are missing. With each passing day the situation becomes more dire. The international community cannot stand by - every intervention possible must be made to save lives and to uphold and ensure accountability on international humanitarian law. We must act now for the sake of our shared humanity.