"Humanity hollowed out": Gaza, two years on

“For two years, the civilian population has endured death, forced displacement, and the denial of dignity on a devastating level. We have seen humanity hollowed out in Gaza. 

Thousands of Palestinians have been separated from their families, and many remain missing. The toll of the past two years is visible on the exhausted faces of people trying to make it hour by hour. 

Remaining essential services cannot adequately meet the needs of civilians. Many people do not have regular access or safe access to water, hygiene facilities, or medical services. The toll two years of struggling to survive has taken on people is beyond words.  

I have met terrified mothers who do not know how feed their children or to keep them safe. I’ve seen patients struggling to recover when they cannot rest because of constant displacement. I have watched entire families emerging from dust-covered, destroyed buildings, shocked but alive.  

The International Committee of the Red Cross continues to respond wherever possible, alongside partners like the Palestine Red Crescent Society, but as the situation deteriorates, challenges only increase. Humanitarian organizations alone cannot meet the ever-increasing needs of civilians.  

A ceasefire is urgently needed. 

The rapid and unimpeded entry and passage of humanitarian assistance must be allowed and facilitated across the Gaza Strip. 

All feasible precautions must be taken to spare the civilian population, who have already endured far too much in the last two years.   

Lives can be saved, but civilians can’t afford to wait. They need political action now.“