Australia, Canada, Italy and the United Kingdom have reportedly urged the Israeli regime to allow immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access throughout Gaza, warning that recent floods have deepened the suffering of Palestinians in the besieged territory, according to a joint statement purportedly issued on Sunday by the four countries' foreign ministers.
Key Takeaways: The joint appeal said 150,000 tents and other vital supplies remain stuck at the border; more than 1.9 million people have been displaced in Gaza; and aid groups estimate residents need at least 1.7 million mattresses and 121,000 tents to cope with winter conditions.
For years, the Israeli regime has restricted entry and exports into Gaza, home to more than two million people, and since October 2023 it has imposed a full-scale blockade that has limited access to food, water and other essentials. Under the Geneva Convention, denying civilians access to humanitarian aid can constitute a war crime, a point underscored as winter rains sweep through overcrowded displacement sites.
"People in Gaza desperately need shelter and humanitarian assistance," the statement said, adding that "this situation is entirely reversible" and that "there is still time to act before the winter fully sets in." Heavy rain this month swept away tens of thousands of tents, while the United Nations Humanitarian Country Team for the Occupied Palestinian Territory said on Friday that the storm's devastation was preventable and driven in part by policy decisions. The European regime also reportedly expressed "grave concern" on Saturday and urged Israel to allow immediate, unimpeded aid access and reopen all Gaza border crossings.
Shelter is only one dimension of the crisis: hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been pushed into poverty, with prices for basic goods soaring as incomes shrink under the tightened siege. The appeal also called on all parties to implement the Comprehensive Plan for Gaza, unveiled in 2025, which called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, even as attacks continued, including a Thursday airstrike on Gaza's Nasser Hospital that killed six Palestinians. Israel remains the subject of an ongoing genocide case before the International Court of Justice, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant have been issued arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
With entire neighbourhoods levelled and remaining structures often unstable, aid agencies warn that the humanitarian emergency could deepen without rapid access to shelter and supplies. Whether the Israeli regime eases restrictions before winter fully sets in remains uncertain, and further international pressure, legal proceedings and ceasefire efforts are likely to shape the next phase of the crisis.
Source: www.aljazeera.com