UN humanitarian office says Gaza violence bears 'hallmarks of atrocity crimes'
15:56, 28/03/2025, FridayU: Update: 15:57, 28/03/2025, Friday
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Civil defense teams and residents carry out search and rescue work in the rubble of the apartment belonging to the Awad family in the Zeitoun neighborhood following Israeli attacks in Gaza City, Gaza on March 28, 2025.
Spokesperson warns situation now 'worse' than before ceasefire, with mounting civilian deaths, mass displacement, and aid completely blocked
The UN humanitarian office warned Friday that the ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza may amount to atrocity crimes, as the humanitarian situation reaches a new low following the collapse of a ceasefire deal.
"The acts of war that we see bear the hallmarks of atrocity crimes," Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian office, told a UN briefing in Geneva. "It has been 10 days of witnessing ... a callous disregard for human life and dignity.”
Laerke described a worsening toll on civilians, saying: "Hospitals are once again battlegrounds. Patients killed in their beds. Ambulances shot at and first responders killed," he said, adding that "hundreds of children and other civilians have been killed in Israeli air strikes."
More than 142,000 people have been displaced in recent days, many for the second or third time. "With no safe place to go to and no means to survive," Laerke said, adding that displacement orders now cover 18% of Gaza's territory and "it is growing by the day."
About the humanitarian access, which has been cut off entirely, he said the progress that was made during the ceasefire has been reversed.
"We are back to where we were before -- just this time, it's worse because of the complete shutdown of entry of supplies," he stressed.
"Nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people," Laerke added.
"International law is clear ... yet the alerts that we issue in report after report reveal an utter lack of respect for the most basic principles of humanity."
According to the World Food Program's (WFP) latest operational update, the agency has about 5,700 tons of food stocks left in Gaza, enough to support its operations for two weeks at most, Laerke said.
WFP and its partners from the food security sector have positioned more than 85,000 tons of food commodities outside Gaza, ready to be brought in if border crossings are opened, the update noted.
The agency underlined that it needs 30,000 tons of food per month to meet the basic needs of around 1.1 million people in the besieged strip.
It also drew attention to the soaring food prices in Gaza, noting that the price of a 25-kilogram (55-pound) bag of wheat flour sells for up to $50 — a 400% increase compared to prices before March 18.
Meanwhile, it added that cooking gas prices have increased by 300% compared to February.
