Former U.S. diplomat Dennis Ross said the overwhelming majority of humanitarian aid intended for Palestinians trapped in war-torn Gaza is taken by the Hamas terrorist organization and that "someone must" protect the shipments.
"A UN official told me that lately 80 per cent of the humanitarian assistance going into Gaza has been looted by criminal gangs or Hamas," Ross posted Thursday on X.
Since Israel initiated its ground operation into the Gazan city of Rafah in early May to root out and destroy the remaining Hamas militants, the IDF has maintained a strict military blockade to monitor movement into the Gaza Strip. The United Nations said Gazans in the north are experiencing "catastrophic hunger" and that famine may have already started.
Ross, who served as a diplomat in Republican and Democrat administrations, said protection of aid shipments is needed or civilians will continue to face dire consequences.
"That has to stop; there must be security for the distribution. Either Israel does it, Egypt does it or contractors do It. But someone must do it," Ross wrote.
To aid with the effort, the U.S. built a temporary pier on the shores of the Gaza strip, but it has been plagued with problems. Earlier Thursday, it was reported the pier was back in use after several weeks of disruption due to poor weather conditions.
In May, a U.N. official said 11 of 16 aid trucks leaving the pier "were cleaned out by Palestinians" on their way to the World Food Programme warehouse in Deir al-Balah.
"They [armed terrorists] just basically mounted on the trucks and helped themselves to some of the food parcels," the official said.
Since Hamas invaded northern Israel on Oct. 7 and killed 1,200 people, the conflict has killed more than 37,000 people according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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