Red Cross head says people in Palestine, Israel traumatized

GENEVA

The International Red Cross head said Thursday after a visit to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory that residents are traumatized after the 11-day escalation which ended in a cease-fire last month.

“I visited Gaza yesterday and the south of Israel today,” said Robert Mardini, the director-general of Red Cross, in a statement.

“The trauma in this region grows after each new round of hostilities. People remain wary of what’s to come.”

He said people shared profound fatigue, hopelessness, and an inability to see a better future for the younger generations.

“The humanitarian aid that residents in Gaza need now cannot prevent a nearly inevitable return to nights filled with terror at some point in the near or distant future,” said Mardini.

Mardini said the terror could only end “with political solutions.”

“I have conveyed to both sides our offer to be a neutral intermediary should there be a negotiated exchange for detainees or human remains. Families have the right to know, to grieve, and to move on with their lives,” said Mardini.

Gaza people deeply affected

“People in Gaza have been deeply affected by the latest escalation. With every round of fighting, they are left worse off, with livelihoods and homes ruined once more,” said the Red Cross chief.

“Civilians in Israel have also paid a high price. In the south, staying close to shelters has become second nature for communities, as has extinguishing fires caused by arson balloons that damage farmland and livelihoods,” said Mardini.

He said that humanitarian aid preventing the collapse of some essential services in Gaza is not sustainable.

Mardini went on to say that those under the age of 18 have lived through four military operations and countless escalations.

He said that he faced similar questions in Jerusalem. “What is the future of Palestinian youth living under the longest military occupation in modern history?”

Mardini added that international humanitarian law has to be restored to address the legal and humanitarian impacts of occupation policies on the Palestinian population.

“Respect of this law is not the panacea to end the occupation, but it helps preserve a path toward a negotiated solution," he said.

Red Cross teams recently reached Gaza to bring in extra medical supplies to support a fragile health system under immense strain and also simultaneously coping with the spread of COVID-19.

Mardini said the teams are assisting families who have lost homes and access to water and electricity, focusing on long-term needs like rebuilding infrastructure and crucial mental health support.

“We will also continue to support our partners from Magen David Adom in Israel and the Palestine Red Crescent Society,” he said.

Violence in Gaza erupted against the backdrop of tension over an Israeli court ruling to evict Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem and police assaults on worshippers inside the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque.