Israel says plenty of food in Gaza, UN says that's ridiculous

By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations on Tuesday dismissed as "ridiculous" an assertion by Israel that there was enough food in the Gaza Strip to last for a long period of time, despite the closure of all 25 bakeries in the enclave supported by the World Food Programme.

No aid has been delivered to the Palestinian enclave since March 2. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has said it would not allow the entry of all goods and supplies into Gaza until Hamas releases all remaining hostages.

Then later in March Israel resumed its bombardment of Gaza after a two-month truce and sent troops back into the enclave.

COGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid deliveries, said on Tuesday that during the truce some 25,200 trucks entered Gaza, carrying almost 450,000 tons of aid.

"That's nearly a third of the total trucks that entered Gaza during the entire war, in just over a month," COGAT said in a post on X. "There is enough food for a long period of time, if Hamas lets the civilians have it."

When asked about the statement, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters: "As far as the UN is concerned, that's ridiculous ... we are at the tail end of our supplies."

"You know, WFP doesn't close its bakeries for fun. If there's no flour, if there's no cooking gas, the bakeries cannot open," Dujarric added.

AID DIVERTED?

Before the two month ceasefire, global food security experts warned in November that there was a "strong likelihood that famine is imminent in areas" of northern Gaza.

Throughout the war, the U.N. has described its humanitarian operation in Gaza as opportunistic - facing problems with Israel's military operation, access restrictions by Israel into and throughout Gaza and looting by armed gangs.

"The UN aid was less than 30% of the total amount of aid that entered. Meaning, when the UN say they have 2 weeks worth of aid left in Gaza, there are plenty of other aid organizations and other actors with food aid," COGAT said.

COGAT said it continues to monitor and assess the humanitarian situation in Gaza in coordination with the international community. It also said much of the aid delivered to Gaza during the ceasefire had been diverted.

"The U.N. has kept a chain of custody and a very good chain of custody on all the aid it's delivered," Dujarric said.

Hamas said Gaza has reached a "famine phase," describing it as "one of the worst humanitarian crisis in modern history." It said it held Israel full responsibility for the "catastrophic human consequences increasing by the hour."

The war in Gaza was triggered on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas killed 1,200 people in southern Israel, and took some 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, more than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols, additional reporting by Menna Alaa El Din; Editing by Nick Zieminski)