EU official says Gaza is world's largest 'open graveyard'

"Before the war, Gaza was the largest open-air prison. Today, this land is the largest open-air cemetery," AFP quoted EU Foreign Policy Commissioner Josep Borrell as saying at a conference of EU ministers in Brussels (Belgium) on March 18.

“It is the graveyard of tens of thousands of people and also the graveyard of many of the most important principles in humanitarian law,” said Mr. Borrell.

The EU's top diplomat also repeated accusations that Israel was using hunger as a "weapon of war" by not allowing trucks carrying aid into Gaza. "Israel is causing famine," he told a conference on humanitarian issues.

Aid ship arrives in Gaza, Israel rejects Hamas ceasefire proposal

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz has hit back at Mr Borrell's rhetoric, calling on him to "stop attacking Israel and recognise our right to defend ourselves against Hamas' crimes".

"Israel is allowing large amounts of humanitarian aid into Gaza by land, air and sea for anyone willing to help," Katz wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Quan chức EU nói Gaza là 'nghĩa địa lộ thiên' lớn nhất thế giới- Ảnh 1. — A woman cooks breakfast amid rubble in northern Gaza on March 13.

Also on March 18, a new report was released, assessing that famine is expected to occur in northern Gaza between now and May.

"Famine is now predicted and imminent in the North Gaza and Gaza governorates, likely to become evident between mid-March 2024 and May 2024," Reuters quoted a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) program, a United Nations-backed initiative.

The number of people at risk of “catastrophic famine” across the entire Gaza Strip has now reached 1.1 million, or about half the territory’s population, the report said, nearly double the figure cited in the last IPC report on Gaza, issued in December 2023.

The IPC analysis said famine could still be avoided if Israel and Hamas ended their conflict, and aid organizations increased access to Gaza.

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