July 24, 2001
Three major British development agencies working in Israel and the Palestinian Territories warned that spiraling violence, insecurity and poverty in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are leading to a new phase of the already profound humanitarian crisis. According to Oxfam, Christian Aid and Save the Children, the current escalation of violence has further exacerbated the extreme economic hardship faced by the majority of Palestinians, and has deepened the levels of frustration and insecurity.
"Our staff and partners are witnessing an increased deployment of tanks and armoured personnel carriers around populated Palestinian areas, and increasingly restrictive checkpoints between Palestinian towns and villages," said Roger Riddell, Christian Aid's international director. "If any further military escalation occurs, we are convinced that the already vulnerable Palestinian civilian population will face a full-scale humanitarian crisis."
The past 10 months of conflict have brought about 532 Palestinian and 132 Israeli fatalities, and over 15,000 injured. Palestinian communities are under severe economic strain - some 64% of Palestinian households now live below the poverty line. An estimated 74% of the population have qualified for emergency food assistance from the United Nations.1 There are disturbing indications that the populations' ability to cope with the cumulative effects of closure is coming to an end. Dr. Hassan Abu Libdeh, head of the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, reports, "Our recent surveys show that food purchasing and consumption patterns are now changing radically, with a worrying decrease in consumption of milk and meat products."
An Oxfam water and sanitation engineer warned, "We increasingly see villages where restrictions to basic services such as adequate drinking water and sanitation services result in immediate hardship and if unchecked could lead to outbreaks of disease." Recent research by Save the Children clearly indicates that the prolonged closures imposed by Israel on Palestinian areas have had a devastating impact on children's lives. One of the findings of the report demonstrates how the current situation "… has set back the progress of one of the region's fastest growing and most successful education systems, and one that is crucial for the eventual success of the Palestinian economy and society, and for peace in the region." "People are economically desperate and without recourse," said Lee O'Brien, Oxfam Policy Adviser in Jerusalem. "The extended toll of this conflict has left over a million Palestinians in a situation of chronic poverty that will take decades to reverse under the best of circumstances."
Oxfam, Christian Aid and Save the Children condemn all acts of violence perpetrated by either side of this conflict. We also confirm our belief in the rights of all peoples, Israeli and Palestinian, as expressed in UN Resolutions and International law. We are calling for more concerted action by the British government, the EU, the wider international community to, and both sides in the conflict: Ensure that civilian populations affected by the conflict receive adequate levels of food, water and medical attention, and children's rights of education are fully upheld. Ensure an easing of Israeli security measures with a view to allowing normal economic activity to resume. Halt to the escalation of military actions, and renew commitments to a cease-fire by all parties. Organise and ensure access for a neutral, international monitoring and protection force to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention and the Additional Protocols, with a particular view to protecting civilian populations.
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