OPINION:The death rate in Gaza exceeds even the worst of recent wars, writes Ross Duffy
THE THREE-WEEK Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip is now estimated to have caused the deaths of more than 1,000 people and has resulted in several thousand more casualties.
Since Israeli troops entered Gaza on January 3rd, one-third of the deaths which have occurred there are believed to be those of children and adolescents under the age of 16.
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has been providing medical aid to the population of Gaza since 1989 and has had emergency teams in place since the Israeli offensive began three weeks ago. Even for a humanitarian organisation that has worked in the world’s most violent conflicts for over 40 years – in Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Darfur, among others – MSF finds it difficult to recall a comparable slaughter of civilians in such a short space of time.
We must go back to the Russian army’s bombing in December 1999 of Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, to find equivalent death rates in such a short time. At least 260 people died in Grozny during the five-day period between December 2th and 7th, 1999.
On receiving the Nobel Prize in Oslo on December 10th of that year, MSF called on Boris Yeltsin to stop the indiscriminate bombing and to allow our medical teams access to the wounded and sick. Our call to action fell on deaf ears.
Similarly, calls by the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross have been unsuccessful in Gaza. Our purpose is not to rank the worst horrors of war, but to state that the Israeli attack on Gaza is being conducted as cynically, and with as little respect for civilians, as any wars that MSF teams have faced in recent years.
Worse, this violence is striking a captive population that cannot flee to safety. An MSF emergency team is working alongside exhausted Palestinian medical workers in overflowing hospitals.
However, many wounded cannot receive treatment because they are trapped in their homes, unable to reach hospitals, or because medics cannot reach them, as bombs and gunfire do not spare ambulances, hospitals, the wounded or medics who try to move around Gaza city.
The daily three-hour ceasefire, which applies only to the city, is entirely insufficient to organise evacuation and treatment of the wounded, particularly while incessant bombing continues on the periphery. During a recent “ceasefire”, fighting inside the city remained intense, resulting in the shelling of a hospital.
Israel must immediately terminate its offensive or radically change its methods in order to enable aid workers to reach the wounded, evacuate them and treat them in conditions safe from attack. Furthermore, the population must be allowed to seek refuge and protection.
As of this date, these minimal conditions for humanitarian aid, as provided for by the Geneva Conventions, are not being met. Contrary to Israeli government statements, the offensive in Gaza does not respect international humanitarian law.
To claim otherwise only serves to mask the ongoing violence.
Ross Duffy is head of Médecins Sans Frontières Ireland. MSF has been working in the Gaza Strip since 1989. The team includes three international staff and 70 Palestinian staff, 35 of whom are medical workers. Regular programmes include post-operative care, physical therapy, paediatric services and psychosocial/medical support