(AKI) - The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip after more than two weeks of military attack by Israel is dire and the number of Palestinians fleeing the besieged territory is increasing "hour by hour," the United Nations Relief and Works Agency's Arabic Spokesman in Gaza, Adnan Abu-Hasnar told Adnkronos International. "Today was one of the worst days that the Palestinians have experienced during their lives. The bombardments continued all night," Hasnar said.The heart [urp!] bleeds.
"The number of people fleeing their homes is increasing hour by hour. One Monday, 25,000 had fled. In the last 24 hours, the total has risen to 40,000," he stated.
That sounds prudent.
Forty thousand people have taken shelter in UN emergency shelters and schools he said. "People are constantly feeling afraid of being bombed, Abu-Hasnar said. "No place is safe," he added.
If the current military offensive continues at its present intensity, twice as many Palestinians will be killed as died in the 2006 Israel-Gaza conflict, he warned. A total 970 Palestinians have died since the current offensive began on 27 December and over 4,200 have been injured according to Palestinian medical sources.
Already enduring an acute scarcity of food, power and a lack of cash, Palestinians are are suffering severe psychological effects from the conflict, Abu-Hasnar said. "The situation will be horrible to deal with even after the clashes stop. They are feeling trauma and panic," he stated.
The 3-hour daily humanitarian 'breathing space' during which Israel is suspending its attacks is inadequate, he said. "Gazans need more time," he emphasised. "They need an immediate stop to the military action and the permanent opening of all the crossing points to allow supplies to enter Gaza," he said.
"There is nothing to buy in the shops and supermarkets. People want bread and there are long lines outside the bakeries," he said. "They cannot find milk," he said. Over half a million people in Gaza are without water, he added.
"Refugees are getting some basic staples, such as flour and sugar, but it's not enough. They used to receive thousands of types of food from Israel," he noted.
He said 90 percent of farms in northern Gaza has been destroyed and farmers also have no seeds and fertiliser as these used to be imported from Israel. In southern Gaza, most farmers have fled their homes and those who remain are afraid to go into the fields, Abu-Hasnar said.
The Palestinian health ministry in a statement on Tuesday said that as well as blankets, there is a need for soap, towels and other personal items. The ministry said was sending 10 fully equipped ambulances from the West Bank to Gaza to replace seven that Israeli forces destroyed in an attack on Monday which killed two paramedics and injured 17. It also issued a list of drugs and medical supplies that are urgently needed by Gaza's hospitals.
International Committee of the Red Cross president, Jacob Kellenberger, who visited Gaza on Tuesday, asked Israel to respect the movement of medical teams and ambulances.
Injured Palestinians have died to due a shortage of ambulances but patients are also dying because the hospitals cannot cope with the type of wounds, especially head injuries, Abu-Hasnar said. "The doctors are doing a good job but we need more of them, and more intensive care facilities and surgery rooms to treat people who have lost limbs," he stated.
The lack of electricity being experienced by one million people in Gaza is dangerous for hospitals, which are being forced to rely on generators, he said. "If these cut out, there will be a catastrophe."
During the last 24 hours, 38 injured Palestinians were evacuated through the Rafah crossing by Egyptian ambulances and five patients are due to be transferred to hospitals in Qatar, according to the Palestinian health ministry.