Time’s being wasted on politics of aid while deaths mount in Gaza, warns senior official
source: UN News
published: 23 May 2025
Image Credit: Pexels/Duda
The UN already has a proven system to deliver assistance to people in Gaza and will not take part in any plan that does not uphold universally established humanitarian principles, a spokesperson for aid coordination office OCHA affirmed on Friday.
“There's been so much time wasted talking about the various proposals and the various plans. In the meantime, people are dying and are left without aid,” Olga Cherevko said in an exclusive interview with UN News.
This week, UN agencies were able to bring limited amounts of food, flour and other items into Gaza after Israel lifted a nearly three-month aid blockade.
Ms. Cherevko said humanitarians were told this was a temporary measure until aid distribution is implemented through the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an initiative backed by Israel and the United States.
The plan sees aid dispersed from four points south of the Netzarim Corridor, which is under Israeli military control, and involves the use of private US contractors.
She discussed this development, the positive impact of the trickle of aid allowed into Gaza, and the need to scale up efforts.
“There is a sense that some people feel like this is the end and that there is no turning back – and that they are just waiting to die,” she said.
Olga Cherevko: "We've been speaking about this and other proposals and plans. Our concerns are that any distribution of aid, any system that exists, needs to be in line with globally established humanitarian principles. And if it isn’t, it’s not something that we can be involved in.
"We have concerns about the scalability of this proposed plan, and about various other parts of it.
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