Tánaiste Simon Harris has said that “children are starving before our eyes” in Gaza as more than 100 aid organisations warned that “mass starvation” was spreading in the Palestinian territory.
In a statement, he said: “The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths of despair and misery.”
“People are dying every day from lack of food and medicine,” said Mr Harris, adding that hundreds “have been killed while trying to collect what little food is available”.
“This is an affront to our collective humanity,” he said.
He called for an “immediate and permanent ceasefire”.
He added: “Israel must lift its blockade and allow the full resumption of humanitarian aid into and throughout Gaza.
“All hostages must be released by Hamas and returned to their families.”
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that what is happening in Gaza is “beyond any comprehension” adding that the images are “horrific”.
“It’s a stain on Israel at this stage. It’s a shame that any government would continue a war that is wreaking such devastation on poor children and innocent children at the scale and level that is happening,” he said.
The Taoiseach called for a “massive surge” in humanitarian aid into Gaza, adding that he is “very disturbed by the undermining of the UN and the relief organisations”.
Six-month-old Jouri Abu Hajar is fed in the nutrition ward at Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat, central Gaza
Israel is facing mounting international pressure over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory, where more than two million people face severe shortages of food and other essentials after 21 months of conflict.
Watch: Taoiseach says a shame Israel continues to wreak war on innocent children
The UN said that Israeli forces had killed more than 1,000 Palestinians trying to get food aid since the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operations in late May effectively sidelining the existing UN-led system.
Canadian surgeon says last lifelines in Gaza ‘collapsing’
Meanwhile, a surgeon based in Gaza said major shortages and crumbling facilities are forcing healthcare workers to provide sub-optimal care for people that have “some of the worst injuries” she has tried to treat.
Canadian doctor Deirdre Nunan works at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Dr Nunan said she did not have the relevant tools to carry out the necessary surgeries as an orthopaedic surgeon.
She said the Nasser Hospital is crumbling because of numerous Israeli attacks on the facility.
In the big operating theatres, she said less than half of the taps work, and in the satellite operating theatres, she said there are days when they have no water or not enough power to run the air-conditioning.
“We are cobbling together what is left from the storage rooms to try to piece together something that looks like orthopedic fixation using things that are the wrong size, the wrong length, really providing what is unfortunately sub-optimal care in a totally unfit environment for people that have some of the worse injuries I’ve ever tried to treat in my life,” she said.
Dr Nunan said healthcare workers are working in sweltering conditions that are dangerous for patients.
“I have to decide between the limited amount of time that we have in the operating room for which patient gets to go into which surgery on which day,” she added.
Health officials say hospitals have been running out of fuel, food aid and medicine, risking a halt to vital operations.
Dr Nunan has been coming to Gaza since 2019 and is currently on her sixth tour of duty.
She has been in Gaza for the past three weeks.
An injured child is seen lying on the floor of the Nasser Hospital in Gaza
“It’s just one scene of desperation after another through the three weeks that I’ve been here.
“There are more and more people that are living on the hospital grounds and in the hospital corridors themselves.”
She said the people of Gaza have almost no material possessions left, adding that children are begging for food and fresh water.
“I see it worsening before my eyes”
Yesterday, the head of Gaza’s largest hospital has said 21 children have died due to malnutrition and starvation in the Palestinian territory in the past three days.
Dr Nunan described the lives of colleagues living in tents and the ruins of their homes as lives of “bare survival”.
She agreed with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that the last lifelines keeping people alive in Gaza were collapsing.
“I see it worsening before my eyes,” she said.
More than 100 aid organisations have warned that “mass starvation” is spreading in the Palestinian territory as Israel is facing mounting international pressure over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the territory.
Dr Nunan said the people are what bring her back to Gaza.
“These are some of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met in the world.
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“I’ve had multi-year friendships with a lot of my colleagues that we keep in touch even when I’m not here.”
Despite the desperation, she said people in Gaza continue to be “so warm, so welcoming, so generous despite having nothing”.
She said the healthcare workers are the most dedicated and professional she has ever worked with.
“For me it continues to be a privilege to come to Gaza even though I am absolutely heartbroken and extremely, extremely angry with the world for allowing this desecration to take place and for doing so little to stop it.”
