Israel's total blockade of humanitarian aid into Gaza entered its tenth consecutive day on Tuesday. This gross violation of international humanitarian law and blatant war crime threatens the lives of more than two million people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. On Monday, Israel cut power to a desalination plant for drinking water in Gaza, depriving civilians of water essential to their survival.
All crossings into Gaza have been closed for the entry of humanitarian or commercial goods since March 2.
âHumanitarian aid in Gaza is a lifeline for over two million Palestinians who have endured unimaginable conditions for many months. A sustained supply of aid is indispensable to their survival,â said Muhannad Hadi, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), in a statement on Monday.
Noting that international humanitarian law is clear, Hadi said humanitarian aid must be allowed in.
The basic needs of the civilian population in Gaza âmust be met, including through the unimpeded entry and distribution of humanitarian assistance. The entry of lifesaving aid must resume immediately. Any further delays will further reverse any progress we have managed to achieve during the ceasefire.â
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Monday that the Kerem Shalom crossing also remained closed for the collection of goods already brought in, severely hampering the delivery of humanitarian aid throughout the Gaza Strip.
The UN and aid agencies warn that fuel shortages are having an impact on aid operations. In Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah, six bakeries closed last week due to a lack of cooking gas. As of Sunday, 19 bakeries supported by the World Food Programme (WFP) were still operating - and trying to maximize their capacity to fill the gaps.
The UN is currently assessing how to prioritize the remaining stock of humanitarian supplies.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres said that the Secretary-General was very concerned by Israel's decision to limit the electricity supply going into Gaza.
"This latest decision will substantially reduce the availability of drinking water in the Gaza Strip.âŻStarting today, the facility is set to run on backup generators, which will reduce water production capacity," said StĂ©phane Dujarric.
âRestoring this connection is vital for tens ofâŻthousands of families and children.â
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned on Monday that âGaza's humanitarian crisis is far from overâ. While aid deliveries had substantially increased over the course of the ceasefire, they remained âa drop in the ocean compared to the immense needs on the ground.â
âThe suspension of assistance now, including the cessation of power to the only water desalination facility in Gaza, risks plunging Gaza further into an acute humanitarian emergency,â the ICRC said in a statement.
In response to the cutting of electricity, the international rights group Amnesty International said Israel must not be allowed to use water as a weapon of war.
âFuel, food, shelter and other supplies critical to the survival of the civilian population are a matter of life and death, not a means to exert pressure in negotiations,â Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Policy, Advocacy and Campaigns at Amnesty International, said in a statement on Monday.
âIsraelâs decision to cut off electricity to Gazaâs main operational desalination plant, a week after it halted the entry of all humanitarian aid and commercial supplies, including fuel and food, violates international humanitarian law and is further evidence of Israelâs genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip,â she said.
A growing number of independent legal experts and international organizations - including Amnesty International - have found that Israel's actions in Gaza against Palestinians as a group amount to genocide.
Genocide is a term used to describe violent crimes committed against a group with the intent to destroy the existence of the group, in whole or in part. According to the Genocide Convention, acts amounting to genocide include deliberately inflicting on a group or part of a group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction.
The rights group Human Rights Watch has found that during the war, Israeli authorities have deliberately inflicted living conditions during the war calculated to bring about the destruction of part of the population in the Gaza Strip by deliberately depriving Palestinian civilians there of adequate access to water, most likely resulting in thousands of deaths.
Amnesty's Rosas said Israel's âinhumane and unlawful actionsâ were a clear indication that Israel was continuing its policy of deliberately imposing on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction.
âThey are also a reminder of the control Israel has as occupying power, allowing it to turn life-critical services on and off at any given point,â she added.
As an occupying power, Israel has a legal obligation under international humanitarian law (IHL), in particular the Fourth Geneva Convention, to allow and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in need, including food, water, medicine and other supplies essential to the survival of civilians.
The deliberate obstruction of aid constitutes a grave breach of international humanitarian law and a war crime under international law. Collective punishment of civilians constitutes a serious war crime. Obstruction of aid also violates international human rights law.
On January 19, 2025, a ceasefire between Israel and the armed group Hamas in the Gaza Strip went into effect. The first phase of the previously agreed ceasefire expired on March 1. During the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, 600 trucks per day were allowed into Gaza, including 50 trucks of fuel.
Between the start of the ceasefire and March 1, a surge in aid supplies and improved access conditions allowed humanitarian agencies to expand the delivery of life-saving assistance throughout the Gaza Strip, including to previously inaccessible areas.
For more than a year, Gaza has experienced an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, with people dying from widespread attacks, starvation, dehydration, disease and hypothermia. The relentless operations of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have resulted in large-scale casualties, widespread destruction, and mass displacement.
According to the UN, at least 1.9 million people - or about 90 percent of the population - were uprooted throughout the territory during the war. Many have been repeatedly displaced, some a dozen times or more.
While the ceasefire has brought some much-needed relief to Gaza, it has fallen far short of meeting the immense needs. Gaza's hospitals continue to barely function, with fuel, medical supplies and equipment dwindling, leaving the wounded and sick without care.
Since October 7, 2023, more than 48,400 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Gaza and more than 111,800 injured, most of them civilians. However, the real numbers are estimated to be much higher. Among the dead are at least 387 aid workers, 279 UN staff, 1060 health workers and 200 journalists.
Prior to the Israeli government's total blockade, humanitarian aid to Gaza had been obstructed by Israeli officials for more than a year, in gross violation of international humanitarian law and in apparent use as a method of warfare.
Israel's war in Gaza has been marked by serious war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israeli military and government officials. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity in connection with the situation in Gaza, after the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in November.
Some of the worst crimes committed by Israeli officials in Gaza include collective punishment of civilians, use of starvation as a method of warfare, denial of humanitarian aid, targeted killings of civilians, indiscriminate killing of civilians, disproportionate attacks, forced displacement, torture, enforced disappearances, and other atrocity crimes.