UN envoy Robert Serry declares Gaza to be on red alert amid Israeli efforts to downplay the humanitarian crisis in the territory. In a televised press conference on Friday, Serry said that Israel's saturation bombing has unleashed a serious humanitarian crisis against the Gazans.
He said it is highly important for UN member states to reach a unanimous consensus on a "way forward out of the crisis" and urged the Arab League in particular to show "enough unity" on the issue.
Tel Aviv launched Operation Cast Lead on Saturday allegedly to stop rocket attacks on Israeli communities and is mulling over an order for a full-scale ground offensive into the coastal strip.
The arbitrary Israeli attacks have so far left 436 Gazans dead and more than 2250 wounded -- many of whom are women and children.
UN humanitarian coordinator Max Gaylard said Friday that the air strikes have left Gaza in a critical state of emergency.
"Schools are closed, the population is staying home, Gaza is experiencing a food crisis... hospitals and clinics are absolutely overwhelmed," he said, adding that there is "an air strike every 20 minutes on average, probably intensifying at night."
This comes as Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni rejected French appeals for an emergency forty-eight-hour ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid into the region.
"There is no humanitarian crisis in the Strip, and therefore there is no need for a humanitarian truce," said Livni, adding that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is "completely as it should be".
Her remarks sparked an outcry among UN officials and aid workers. "The current situation in Gaza is appalling, and many basic food items are no longer available on the market," said the World Food Program representative in Gaza, Christine van Nieuwenhuyse.
More than half of the 1.5 million residents of the Palestinian territory are under 15.
UN spokesman Chris Gunness also condemned Israel for attempting to distort the reality about the abysmal humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory.
"When you look at the Israeli assertions about the humanitarian situation, it is very hard to square this with the extraordinarily dire situation on the ground in Gaza,'' he said.
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Topic: UN places Gaza Strip on red alert (Read 653 times)