Gaza - Saba:
The Israeli occupation authorities continued to close the Kerem Shalom crossing, southeast of the Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, preventing the entry of humanitarian aid, goods, and fuel into the Strip for the tenth consecutive day.
The Palestinian Safa News Agency reported that the continued closure of crossings and the denial of aid are exacerbating the humanitarian situation in the Strip and the suffering of Palestinians, amid shortages of basic commodities, fuel, and medical supplies.
The disruption of the entry of basic foodstuffs is deepening the hunger and famine crisis among Gazans, given the scarcity of supplies and the lack of alternatives.
On March 2, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to halt all goods and supplies to the Gaza Strip. Gazans are suffering from a severe shortage of basic foodstuffs, and rising commodity prices are beyond the means of families who have lost their sources of income.
The lives of thousands of sick and wounded are at risk of death due to the lack of treatment, the collapse of the health system, and the prevention of the entry of medicines and medical supplies.
On Monday, Salama Maarouf, head of the government media office in Gaza, said that the enemy's tightening of its blockade on the Strip and the closure of crossings have exacerbated the water crisis due to fuel shortages and the inability of municipalities to deliver water for domestic use to citizens.
Maarouf explained in a statement that the enemy deliberately destroyed more than 700 wells during its war on the Strip, warning that the fuel shortage threatens to shut down the Strip's operating water wells and desalination plants.
He added that the Strip is facing a stifling drinking water crisis after the enemy destroyed 580 water stations, and the remaining ones are threatened with shutdown due to the fuel shortage.
He also noted the inability of emergency committees to provide potable water tankers. In turn, Abdel Nasser Al-Ajrami, head of the Bakeries Owners Association in Gaza, said that five bakeries have ceased operations due to the enemy's closure of the Gaza crossings, warning that the rest will cease operations within a period not exceeding ten to fifteen days.
He explained in a statement that five bakeries have ceased operations due to the depletion of cooking gas, which they rely on for their operations. Four of them are in the Khan Yunis Governorate in the southern Gaza Strip, and one bakery in Al-Bureij in the central Gaza Strip.
He explained that the remaining 18 bakeries throughout the Gaza Strip, also contracted with the World Food Programme, operate automatically and rely on diesel for their operations.
In early March, the first phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, which lasted 42 days, officially ended without the enemy agreeing to enter the second phase and end the war.
The Government Media Office stated that 161,820 tons is the total amount of food that has entered the Gaza Strip since January 19, during the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.