HOSPITAL PATIENTS ACROSS GAZA TO RECEIVE UN FOOD AID

HOSPITAL PATIENTS ACROSS GAZA TO RECEIVE UN FOOD AID
New York, Feb 5 2009 10:10AM
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will provide ready-to-eat meals for hospital patients across Gaza who might otherwise go hungry due to food and fuel shortages, as it expands its emergency relief operation in the wake of the recent Israeli military offensive.

The assistance for Gaza's sick and injured is in addition to the agency's regular distributions of wheat flour, cooking oil and chickpeas to 365,000 people affected by conflict and food shortages.

"The ready-to-eat meals offer an immediate solution to the food needs of hospital patients, who might otherwise go hungry," <"http://beta.wfp.org/news/news-release/wfp-hands-out-ready-eat-meals-hungry-gaza">said WFP Emergency Coordinator Gemmo Lodesani. "Cooking gas is still in short supply, and without this intervention, patients might miss out on a nutritious daily meal."

WFP is aiming to distribute more than 40,000 ready-to-eat meals in the coming days. The packages, which contain items such as canned meat, chicken curry, cheese and biscuits, are part of the first tranche of ready-to-eat meals donated by Saudi Arabia in response to WFP's "Operation Lifeline Gaza" appeal.

In addition to distributing the meals to hospital patients, WFP will also provide them to school children as a one-off ration.

The 22-day Israeli military operation, launched with the stated aim of ending Hamas rocket attacks against Israel, killed some 1,300 Palestinians, injured more than 5,300, 34 per cent of them children, and caused widespread damage and destruction in Gaza.

Since the offensive began on 27 December, WFP has distributed two month rations of food to more than 220,000 people. The agency has also provided free school meals to 30,000 children, and has distributed one-off emergency packages, including date bars, bread, high energy biscuits and canned goods, to more than 150,000 people.

"As each day passes, we get closer to reaching our overall target of 365,000 people among the non-refugee population in Gaza," Mr. Lodesani said.

Critical to this effort is the opening of all border crossings between Israel and Gaza, as well as those between Israel and Egypt, to allow a steady flow of humanitarian aid.

Currently, an average of 70 trucks are crossing the border into Gaza each day, which is less than 10 per cent of what would be required to meet the normal commercial requirements of the people living there, according to the agency.

WFP added that it has barely received 10 per cent of the $81 million needed to meet the emergency food requirements of the 365,000 people it is aiming to feed in Gaza.
Feb 5 2009 10:10AM
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