The UN children’s agency Unicef informed the BBC that a convoy carrying aid was denied entry to northern Gaza despite having all the necessary documentation, noting that such occurrences are common.
Unicef spokesman James Elder, who was in the convoy, reported witnessing the fatal shooting of two Gazan fishermen while waiting at a checkpoint.
The Israel Defense Forces responded by stating that the documentation for the Unicef vehicle was not correctly filled out and accused Mr. Elder of providing a “partial picture.”
Mr. Elder also shared that some people told him they would welcome an air strike on their homes to end their suffering.
In an interview with the BBC’s Today programme, Mr Elder said: “They’re so despairing, they’re so broken, they’ve lost so many family members, they have nothing left.”
He said that areas in Gaza being denied aid are experiencing unprecedented levels of severe malnutrition. He added that doctors in Gaza had to be trained to handle the most serious cases, as they had not encountered such conditions before.
His comments followed a statement by World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who said on Wednesday that a significant portion of Gaza’s population is facing “catastrophic hunger and famine-like conditions.” Dr. Tedros mentioned that more than 8,000 children under five had been diagnosed and treated for acute malnutrition, with over 1,500 suffering from a more severe form.
According to the Hamas-run health ministry, over 37,000 people have been killed, and many hundreds of thousands more have been injured or displaced in Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza. The conflict began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza.
Mr. Elder recounted that on Wednesday, he was on a Unicef lorry in an aid convoy attempting to travel from southern to northern Gaza. Despite having all necessary paperwork, it took them 13 hours to cover approximately 40 km (30 miles).
After spending eight hours at checkpoints they were finally denied entry, he said, “so 10,000 children who were going to benefit from nutritional supplies, medical supplies, did not”.
Mr. Elder stated that he did not know why the convoy was denied entry, but noted that such denials were “consistent and relentless,” with hundreds of similar instances.
The IDF explained that the issue arose because Unicef used a lorry with a rear closed cabin, which requires prior coordination with the authorities. The IDF added that Hamas often uses closed cabins to smuggle weapons and terrorists into northern Gaza.
According to the IDF, Unicef initially claimed that the lorry did not have a closed cabin, but this claim was later found to be false.
“Once the situation was clarified, [Unicef] was offered to continue its movement northward without the mentioned truck or to submit appropriate coordination for the following day,” the IDF added.
“As long as the coordination process is properly conducted, passage will be allowed,” the statement continued.
Mr Elder also said that during the checkpoint wait he saw about eight fishermen trying to catch fish with a single net.
“Suddenly we heard a tank coming down, we heard… automatic fire,” he said.
“We saw two men on the beach, two fishermen fleeing, one was shot in the back, one in the neck.”
The Unicef spokesman stated that the WHO, which had paramedics in the convoy, called the IDF to request permission to provide medical support to the men, but this request was denied.
He mentioned that he later saw the fishermen’s wounds when their colleagues were allowed to retrieve the bodies.
The IDF responded that it is investigating what it referred to as the “incident on the beach mentioned in the interview.”
Mr. Elder, who last visited Gaza six weeks ago, noted that the situation has significantly deteriorated since then.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen a real level of despondency,” he said.
“It’s very unsettling to see a child when their parent can’t protect them, it’s heartbreaking when a parent can’t protect their child, so increasingly I’m hearing people say I just want this over, I’m happy if there’s an air strike on me tonight.”