UN: 14,000 babies could die in the next 48 hours if aid does not arrive

(Patria) - UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, told BBC Radio 4 that the amount of humanitarian aid Israel has allowed into Gaza is devastatingly low, and warned that if aid does not arrive soon, 14,000 babies could die in the next 48 hours.

International pressure over the looming famine forced Benjamin Netanyahu to announce on Sunday evening a relaxation of the devastating eleven-week restrictions on aid deliveries to prevent a “famine crisis” in Gaza – but only at a minimal level.

Fletcher said that five aid trucks entered Gaza yesterday, but described this as a “drop in the ocean” and completely insufficient for the needs of the population.

He said that aid trucks, containing baby food and nutritional products, are technically in Gaza, but have not yet reached civilians because they are just on the other side of the border.

Fletcher warned that 14,000 babies could die in the next 48 hours if aid does not reach them in time.

“I want to save as many of those 14,000 babies as we can in the next 48 hours,” he told the BBC.

Asked how the UN arrived at that figure, he replied: “We have strong teams on the ground – and of course, many of the members have been killed… but we still have many people on the ground – they are in medical centres, in schools... trying to assess the needs.”