Emmaus Partnership
Catholic charity CAFOD has added its name to a letter from 22 humanitarian agencies to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, calling for immediate action to avert a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The letter has been sent ahead of what Israel says is going to be a major ground offensive in Gaza’s southern-most city of Rafah. More than half of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million is now crammed into the city on the border with Egypt, which was home to only 250,000 people before the war between Israel and Hamas.
Many of the displaced people are living in makeshift shelters or tents in squalid conditions, with scarce access to safe drinking water or food.
On Monday, UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned that an assault on Rafah would be “terrifying, given the prospect that an extremely high number of civilians, again mostly children and women, will likely be killed and injured”.
He also said it could mean that the “meagre” humanitarian aid getting into Gaza might stop, with most deliveries currently going through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing.
His warning follows an unusually sharp criticism from the US last week, with President Joe Biden calling Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza “over the top”. On Monday, Mr Biden said Israeli operations in Rafah “should not proceed without a credible plan for ensuring the safety” of civilians.
Speaking after a meeting with Jordan’s King Abdullah, Mr Biden also said the US was working on a ceasefire deal lasting “at least six weeks”.
In the letter sent to Prime Minister Sunak, CAFOD and the humanitarian group say they were driven to write an urgent and formal letter after overnight attacks on Rafah following Israel’s announcement that it aims to “conduct a destructive military campaign on the most densely populated stretch on Earth”.
“The military operation intensified last night, with Rafah subjected to the Israeli military’s increasingly intense bombardment with a further 67 people killed by Israel, mostly civilians, including women and children” says the letter.
“This number will continue to rise. The beleaguered and strained humanitarian system will fully collapse as need will only rise and access decrease. We ask you now to use the UK’s full diplomatic pressure to demand Israel halt its military campaign, which has already resulted in the killing of 28,000 peopleÂ
“We, as agencies united, attempted to work together with the Government towards leveraging what the UK can do to halt these atrocities. We are losing confidence in Ministers as the UK appears utterly incapable of restraining Israel in its current attempts. We write with immediate demands for the UK:
- Call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, including calling off the Rafah offensive. This is the only way to prevent further loss of civilian lives, to secure the release of hostages, and the entry of life-saving humanitarian aid.
- Suspend all arms export licenses and any other forms of military support with immediate effect.
- The UK should ensure Israel fully implements the International Court of Justice orders.
The letter concludes with a plea for the UK government to: “do all it can to persuade the Government of Israel to finally change course. Over a million people in Rafah are at grave risk. We know from history what happens when states stand by and do nothing. We urge you to act now.”
The letter is signed by:
- ActionAid UK
- Action For Humanity
- Caabu (Council for Arab-British Understanding)
- CAFOD
- Christian Aid
- Elhra
- Embrace the Middle East
- Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS)
- Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights
- Minority Rights Group International
- Peace Direct
- Plan International UK
- Interpal
- Islamic Relief UK
- Welfare Association
- Women’s Platform – Northern Ireland
- Quakers in Britain
- Saferworld
- SCIAF
- Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice
- Trócaire
- United Nations Association – UK (UNA-UK)
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CAFOD, ‪Romero House, ‪55 Westminster Bridge Road, ‪London SE1 7JB
The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) is the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales and part of Caritas International.
Registered charity number 1160384. Company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales number 09387398. Registered office: Romero House, 55 Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7JB