WASHINGTON– Senior U.N. officials told Israel they will suspend aid operations in Gaza unless urgent steps are taken to better protect aid workers, two U.N. officials said.
A U.N. letter sent to senior Israeli officials this month said Israel must provide U.N. workers with direct communication with Israeli forces on the ground in Gaza, among other measures, the officials said.
They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing negotiations with Israeli officials. U.N. officials said there had been no final decision on suspending operations in Gaza and that talks with the Israelis were ongoing.
Israeli military officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Israel has acknowledged some military attacks against aid workers, including an attack in April that killed seven workers with the World Central Kitchenand denied the accusations of others.
The UN World Food Program has already suspended the delivery of aid from a US-built dock in Gaza for security reasons.
The UN and other aid officials have complained for months that they have no way to communicate quickly and directly with Israeli forces on the ground, in contrast to usual procedures (known as “deconfliction”) in conflict zones worldwide. to protect humanitarian workers from attacks by fighters.
The UN and aid workers also complain about growing lawlessness in Gaza and have urged Israel to do more to improve the overall security of its operations.
“The missiles hit our facilities, despite being free of conflict,” Steve Taravella, spokesman for the World Food Programme, one of the main organizations working on humanitarian delivery in Gaza, said on Tuesday. Taravella was not one of those who confirmed the UN threat to suspend operations throughout the territory. “WFP warehouses have been caught in the crossfire twice in the last two weeks.”
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