Gaza - Washington: Europe and Arabs - Agencies
The Washington Post revealed, quoting humanitarian organizations, that gangs that loot humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip operate in areas under Israeli control.
The newspaper stated in its report that while the hunger crisis in Gaza is worsening, organized gangs that steal much of the aid that Israel allows to enter the Strip operate freely in areas controlled by the occupation army, according to officials of humanitarian organizations, their workers, transportation companies and witnesses.
The officials said that criminal looting has become the biggest obstacle to distributing aid in the southern half of Gaza, which is home to the vast majority of displaced Palestinians.
According to the newspaper's sources, teams of armed men kill, beat and kidnap aid truck drivers in areas around the Kerem Shalom crossing, which is the main entry point to the Gaza Strip from the south.
The newspaper indicated that the thieves, who run cigarette smuggling operations throughout the year, but are now focusing on stealing food and other supplies, have connections to local crime families, according to residents. According to Manel, the Youm7 website in Cairo,

An internal UN memo last month, a copy of which was obtained by the Washington Post, concluded that the gangs may benefit from what was described as “charity” or “protection” passively, if not actively, from the Israeli occupation forces. The memo noted that one of the gang leaders had set up what resembled a military compound in an area restricted by Israeli forces and controlled and patrolled by them.

Aid organizations said that Israeli authorities had rejected most requests for improved procedures to protect the convoys, including appeals for safer roads, more open crossings and allowing civilian police in Gaza to protect the trucks. Israeli forces repeatedly failed at the scene of the incidents to intervene when looting occurred, according to UN officials and aid workers.

A UN spokesman said that a convoy of 109 trucks carrying food supplies from the World Food Program and the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from the Kerem Shalom crossing with the Gaza Strip was looted on Saturday, causing extensive damage to the trucks and in some cases the loss of their entire cargo. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the convoy, which was scheduled for Sunday, had been instructed by the Israeli military to leave - at short notice - via an unfamiliar alternative route.

In his daily press conference, he said: "As this incident underscores, we continue to face significant challenges in getting aid into southern and central Gaza. These challenges persist despite numerous attempts to overcome them, including the rehabilitation of an alternative route and the use of a new border point, the Kissufim crossing." According to the UN daily news bulletin, a copy of which was received this morning, Tuesday.

The UN spokesman added that Kissufim, Kerem Shalom and surrounding roads have proven impractical due to security issues, and are insufficient to ensure the continuous flow of humanitarian supplies into Gaza.

Dujarric said that supplies needed to prepare hot meals - already in short supply - are only enough for two more days before they run out. Some one million people have not received food parcels since July or earlier.