GENEVA — The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a forceful condemnation Thursday of the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, with a top official warning that global inaction in the face of mounting suffering makes the world complicit.
Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, expressed outrage at the worsening conditions, particularly among children, in the besieged Palestinian territory.
“We have to ask ourselves: How much blood is enough to satisfy whatever the political objectives are?” Ryan said during a press briefing in Geneva. “We are breaking the bodies and the minds of the children of Gaza. We are starving the children of Gaza. Because if we don’t do something about it, we are complicit in what is happening.”
The crisis has escalated since Israel halted aid deliveries on March 2, just days before a ceasefire collapsed after 15 months of war.
The UN has repeatedly sounded the alarm over the worsening humanitarian conditions, warning of imminent famine and the collapse of basic health services.
The World Food Programme (WFP) confirmed last week it had distributed its last available food supplies in Gaza, where 2.4 million Palestinians remain trapped under an Israeli blockade.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, at least 2,326 Palestinians have been killed since Israeli strikes resumed, raising the total death toll in the enclave to 52,418 since the war began.
The conflict erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel that left 1,218 people dead, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 individuals. Israel claims that 58 hostages remain in Gaza, including 34 believed to be dead.
Dr. Ryan emphasized the scale of suffering among children, noting over 1,000 have lost limbs and thousands more suffer from traumatic brain and spinal injuries. “These are injuries from which they’ll never recover,” he said, also highlighting the widespread psychological trauma.
“We are watching this unfold before our very eyes, and we’re not doing anything about it,” Ryan said, visibly emotional. “I’m angry. As a physician, I’m angry with myself that I’m not doing enough. I’m angry with everyone here.”
“This cannot continue,” he added. “This is an abomination.”