This is a synopsis of the remarks made by UNICEF Spokesperson James Elder, to whom credit for cited content may be given, during today's news conference held in the Geneva Palais des Nations.
VENICE, MAY 7, 2024 — All cautions. Every incident involving children murdered or injured. Every picture of suffering and violence. Every staggering statistic about the quantity of moms and children slain, as well as the destruction of houses and hospitals. Everyone Disregarded.
“It seems like our greatest nightmare—the Gazans’ nightmare—is coming true. a reality that individuals in positions of authority can stop.For this reason, UNICEF and other humanitarian organizations have been urging a ceasefire and the cancellation of any attack in Rafah.The city of Rafah is full of kids. Rafah is home to more than half of all girls and boys in Gaza.
“This past weekend’s events in Gaza – the continued killing of children, more attacks from the warring parties, and now evacuation orders – yet again expose how parties to this conflict continue to utterly disregard the lives and protection of children and civilians. “That has to change. Indeed, this is the last chance for this to change. “Aid must flow. Hostages must be freed. Rafah must not be invaded. And children must no longer be killed. “We have pleaded and implored countless times; we do so once more. For the children of Rafah. We need a ceasefire, now.”
“If safety is defined as the absence of bombing combined with access to clean water, enough food, shelter, and medical care—as required by international humanitarian law—then there is nowhere safe to go in the Gaza Strip.
There is around one restroom for every 850 residents in Rafah. For showers, the situation is four times worse. In other words, one shower for every 3,500 individuals. Families have been urged to relocate to zones where the situation is, remarkably, even worse.
Bengaluru will need to brace itself not only for the summer heat but also for the impending water scarcity. The drought in the Cauvery basin and the loss of subsurface water are threatening to make Bengaluru City’s water situation this year comparable to that of Cape Town. D K Shivakumar, the Bengaluru Development Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, recently lamented his lot in life, claiming that the city’s water issue had not spared him either. Shivakumar had stated, “Every borewell in the city, including the one at my house, has dried up.” Dr. TV Ramachandra, a professor at the Indian Institute of Science’s Centre for Ecological Science, expressed a similar worry.
The Cauvery provides Bengaluru with around 1,450 million litres of water per day (MLD), with an extra 700 mld from groundwater resources. But since both sources have run dry, a number of crisis calls from different businesses, organizations, and citizens have been received.
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“Rafah is home to what is now Gaza’s largest remaining hospital – the “European hospital”– named as such to honour the European Union that paid for its construction. Amid the systematic devastation of Gaza’s health system, Rafah’s European Hospital is one of civilians’ last lifelines.
“The South of the Gaza Strip is also the entry point for most of the aid that enters Gaza. A military assault will, at best, greatly complicate aid delivery. If Rafah gate closes for an extended period, it’s hard to see how famine in Gaza can be averted.
“The ability of families to cope has been destroyed. Both physically and mentally, they are barely hanging on. Nobody I’ve ever met in Rafah hasn’t lost a loved one or their house—mostly both. People are worn out. They are underfed. Kids are ill.
