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Humanitarian disaster in Gaza – Germany is providing assistance
Emergency hospital in Gaza supported by Federal Government humanitarian assistance funding, © ICRC
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains disastrous. In order to alleviate this suffering, Germany has repeatedly and significantly increased its humanitarian assistance. Read on to find out more.
For months now, the quantity of relief supplies crossing the border into Gaza has been inadequate and the humanitarian situation there remains disastrous. According to the United Nations, around 1.9 million people – or around 90 percent of the population – in Gaza are internally displaced. Some of these people have already had to flee several times and are now in areas where there is insufficient infrastructure to provide for them.
Following the brutal attack on Israel by the terrorist organisation Hamas on 7 October 2023 and Israel’s military action, the civilian population in Gaza, too, is suffering the consequences of Hamas’ terror. The supply of basic provisions and services for the civilian population has collapsed and hundreds of thousands of people there, including many children, are lacking bare essentials, above all food, water and medical care. It is therefore important that humanitarian assistance can be distributed to the civilian population in Gaza quickly and without any obstructions. This has been one of the priorities during Foreign Minister Baerbock’s eleven visits to the region since 7 October 2023.
Germany has increased its humanitarian assistance for people in the Palestinian territories by a further 50 million euro.
Speaking in Amman on 6 September, the Foreign Minister said:
This humanitarian assistance not only saves lives. It also provides an important basis for the negotiations on a humanitarian ceasefire. And therefore also for the steps towards peace and a durable resolution of the conflict. We have been striving for many months to achieve that very goal, a humanitarian pause. So that the killing finally stops. So that more assistance can finally reach people in Gaza. And so that the hostages still held captive by Hamas are finally released.
Germany’s assistance is focused on the most urgent needs of people on the ground: medical aid and food aid – such as the distribution of food baskets and food supplements, the deployment of emergency medical teams and psychosocial support for families.
With German support, for example, the UN International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme are providing ready‑to‑eat nutrition supplements and infant formula to protect babies and young children from malnutrition.
The World Health Organization, as well as the German Red Cross, the Johanniter, Care International and Oxfam, have been able, with our support, to improve healthcare in Gaza – for example by running mobile clinics in emergency shelters and providing equipment for water treatment.
We are bolstering the UN Development Programme so that it can assist in the disposal of waste, thus helping to prevent outbreaks of diseases.
This brings overall German assistance for the Palestinian territories to more than 360 million euro, with some 290 million euro in new funding since 7 October 2023.
Assistance via all routes
From mid‑March to late May, Germany was involved in airdrops to help the suffering population in Gaza. In total, more than 315 tonnes of aid were brought to the region.
We are also continuing to do all we can to ensure that more assistance can enter Gaza by road. We are working closely with Jordan to this end: together we want to increase the number of lorries transporting relief goods directly from Jordan to Gaza to 350 per week. In order to ensure that people in Gaza have sufficient provisions, the Israeli Government must open further border crossings as a matter of urgency.
The safe distribution of relief supplies within Gaza must be guaranteed in order for humanitarian organisations in Gaza to be able to provide aid in the first place. In addition to the opening of further border crossings, it is therefore crucial that the Israeli Government liaises closely with the United Nations.
A ray of hope: the vaccine rollout against polio
We are supporting the UN vaccination rollout, the aim of which is to vaccinate around 640,000 children under the age of ten against the highly infectious polio virus in the coming weeks. The rollout was successfully launched in August.
Speaking in Amman on 6 September, Foreign Minister Baerbock said:
The fact that, together with the United Nations, we have now been able to facilitate a vaccination rollout against polio is real progress in these dark times. The suspensions of hostilities agreed upon to this end show what is possible when all parties place humanity at the heart of their policies. Each and every dose brings a piece of hope to Gaza. Each and every vaccine dose shows that humanity is indivisible.
What matters now is that everyone respects the agreed suspensions of hostilities so that the vaccination rollout can be successfully concluded.
The Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues is coordinating Germany’s contribution
Foreign Minister Baerbock appointed the seasoned career diplomat Deike Potzel as Germany’s Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues to coordinate Germany’s contribution. In this role, she serves as a counterpart to US Special Envoy Lise Grande and as a central German point of contact for stakeholders in the region. The Special Envoy’s work is embedded in international efforts to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in which Gaza’s civilian population finds itself following Hamas’ terrorist attacks.
As part of humanitarian shuttle diplomacy in the region, the Special Envoy serves as a point of contact for UN organisations (OCHA, UNRWA, WFP, UNICEF) and the ICRC, as well as international and regional partners. She is also in close contact with those responsible for humanitarian assistance in the region and in our partners’ capitals. Her work builds on Germany’s long-standing humanitarian commitment, as well as efforts for peace and stability in the region.