Gaza aid piles up in Egypt, US pier delivery falters

Food and medicine for Palestinians in Gaza are piling up in Egypt because the Rafah crossing remains closed, and there has been no aid delivered to a UN warehouse from a US-built pier for two days, UN officials warned on Monday.

Senior UN aid official Edem Wosornu said there were insufficient supplies and fuel to provide any meaningful level of support to the people of Gaza as they endure Israel's military onslaught against Hamas militants.

"We are running out of words to describe what is happening in Gaza. We have described it as a catastrophe, a nightmare, as hell on earth. It is all of these, and worse," she said.

She told the UN Security Council that the closure of Rafah crossing from Egypt had stopped the delivery of at least 82,000 metric tonnes of supplies, while access at Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing was limited due to "hostilities, challenging logistical conditions, and complex coordination procedures."

Egypt said on Monday that the crossing is closed due to the threat posed to aid work by Israel's military operation.

Israel's UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan told the Security Council that Israel had no other choice but to go after Hamas in Rafah and that the removal of civilians from an active war zone should be supported and not condemned.

"They have moved to a designated humanitarian zone that is being filled with aid. And our hope is for many more civilians to leave Rafah and move out of harm's way," he said. "Temporary evacuation is reversible, but the loss of life is not."

However, Wosornu described the situation for Palestinians at the new sites as horrendous.

Reuters