UN reiterates call on Israel to lift blockade on Gaza

Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the UN Secretary-General said in a press conference at the UN headquarters on Tuesday that as it is now more than 15 years the Gaza strip is under the Israeli blockade while the blockade has caused poverty, high unemployment rates and other problems for the Gazans.

The spokesman added that more than half of Gaza's residents live in poverty, and nearly 80 percent of the region's youth are unemployed.

Dujarric added that, this year, the UN humanitarian organizations needed $510 million to provide food, water, and health services for 1.6 million Gazans, while only 25 percent of that amount has been provided.

He also added that the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) needs an additional $72 million in aid to meet the needs of 1.1 million Palestinian refugees until the end of the year.

Dujarric added that the WFP also needs $35 million more to compensate for rising commodity prices.

According to the UN official, more measures must be taken to reduce the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, in order to fully lift the blockade of Israel in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1860 approved in 2009, and only lasting political solutions can reduce pressure on the deprived people of Gaza.

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