DAVOS: A senior UNICEF official terming the situation in Gaza as catastrophic on Tuesday warned that the besieged enclave has become a graveyard for the children.
Kitty van der Heijden, deputy executive director of partnerships at the agency made the remarks during a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
She said nowhere is was safe in the war-hit Gaza.
The official added children in Gaza were facing the threat of “three Ds,”: death from the air, disease from dirty water and deprivation of basic necessities such as food.
.@UNICEF’s @KittyvdHeijden calls #Gaza ‘a graveyard for children’ at #WEF24. Says 3 Ds define children’s life in Gaza at the moment: death, disease & deprivation (from food). Thank you for your moral clarity, Kitty. pic.twitter.com/09xqtPaZca
— Sara Pantuliano (@SaraPantuliano) January 16, 2024
She stressed the urgent need for collective action to really address the situation for children on the ground.
“As we have said before at UNICEF, Gaza is a graveyard for children.”
Gaza requires urgent aid
Palestinian businessman Samer Kouhry, expressing his views said Gaza could not just rely on international assistance but that the private sector in Palestine had also to step up.
He said the European nations, after an agreement with the Israeli government, could run and staff hospitals with volunteers in Gaza.
Khoury also said a UN task force should be formed to work with Israeli and Palestinian officials to ensure a consistent supply of water to Gaza. He noted Egypt if allowed could also work with the Israelis and Palestinians to restore power to the enclave.
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WEF Managing Director Mirak Dusek, who chaired the panel, dismissed the claims that the conference was not taking the Palestinian crisis seriously.
The ongoing relentless Israeli bombardments and ground operations since October 7 have killed over 24,285 Palestinians, with approximately 70 percent being women, young children, and adolescents, according to the Gaza Strip health ministry.
