Hey everyone, Rachel Lester here. Today is June 5th, 2024, marking day 243 of the October 7th War. Welcome to the daily briefing from the Israeli citizen spokesperson’s office. We’re live on social media, so feel free to send in your questions from wherever you’re watching.
The UN’s Role in Gaza: Fact vs. Fiction
Let’s get straight to the point: the United Nations is not doing its job in Gaza. To cover up its inefficiencies, the UN is spreading falsehoods about Israel. Contrary to what the UN wants you to believe, Israel is not blocking aid from entering Gaza. In fact, Israel has been flooding Gaza with so much aid that the UN is struggling to distribute it. Just yesterday, 263 trucks entered Gaza from Israel through the Kerem Shalom Crossing. Last week, almost 1,900 trucks made the same journey. This is far more food than was entering Gaza before the war. When these trucks enter Gaza, they unload their cargo on the Gaza side of the crossing. The cargo is then supposed to be picked up by UN aid agencies for distribution. However, this system is failing because the UN is not doing its job. Right now, there is enough food sitting inside Gaza to fill 1,000 trucks, but it’s just sitting there because nobody is collecting it. The UN has only brought 24 new trucks into Gaza in the past eight months, which is inexcusable.
Israel’s Efforts to Facilitate Aid
Israel is doing everything it can to help the UN, even as the UN wages an information war against Israel. Israel has helped the UN find ways to buy more trucks and has facilitated the entry of fuel for these trucks through the Kerem Shalom Crossing. Israel has even widened the road from the crossing into Gaza to ensure that humanitarian aid can flow more smoothly. The goal is to get aid to the civilians who need it while preventing Hamas from stealing it.
The UN’s Inadequate Response
In other parts of the world where humanitarian aid is needed, international aid organizations send thousands of people. How many has the UN sent to Gaza? Just 60. This is not enough. The UN can and must do more. Recently, UNRWA tweeted that desalination plants in Gaza have shut down due to a lack of fuel. However, UNRWA is not a credible source; it is a Hamas front that covers up the fact that Hamas steals aid and uses UNRWA schools as terror bases.
The Bigger Picture: The October 7th War
Let’s not forget why Gaza is a war zone. The government of Gaza, Hamas, invaded Israel on October 7th, massacring families and abducting over 250 people, including grandparents and toddlers. Hamas could end the war immediately by laying down its arms and releasing the hostages. Instead, it continues to fight, and it is responsible for the consequences of that decision.
Addressing Questions from Social Media
Question from Instagram Stories: If so much aid is going into Gaza, why are there so many reports about famine?
Great question. A new academic study from Hebrew University in Jerusalem looked at all the data about food entering Gaza. The study found that the quantity of food going into Gaza exceeds international standards, meaning there should be plenty of food for the entire population. The problem is that the UN is failing to distribute the food that is already inside Gaza. If the world truly cared about the civilians in Gaza, they would pressure the UN to improve its logistics capabilities.
Question from Twitter DM: What has been the response to the Hezbollah-caused fires in Northern Israel from the IDF and around the world?
On Monday night, Hezbollah fired rockets and suicide drones from Southern Lebanon into Northern Israel, sparking fires that burned 2,500 acres of land. The IDF has been striking Hezbollah infrastructure in Southern Lebanon almost daily since October 8th. However, the global response has been disappointingly silent. Major news outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the BBC have provided little to no coverage of these attacks.
Question from Instagram Stories: If a ceasefire happens in Gaza, will the fighting in Northern Israel stop, or is it a completely separate war at this point?
During the ceasefire in November, we did see more quiet across the Middle East, including from Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies. However, Israel is currently under attack on seven different fronts, and these terrorist groups have stated goals to wipe Israel off the map. It’s unlikely they will back off until Israel makes them.
Final Question from Instagram Stories: You said there’s more humanitarian aid going into Gaza now than before the war. Do you have the numbers from before the war?
Before October 7th, an average of about 72 trucks of food and 10 trucks of humanitarian aid were going into Gaza daily. Now, there is more food and aid going into Gaza than ever before. Just yesterday, Israel delivered 217 trucks of food and 42 trucks of other humanitarian aid. The issue is not the quantity of aid but the UN’s failure to distribute it. That’s all the time we have today. Thank you for watching. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube. We’ll be back tomorrow at 3 PM Israel time, 8 AM Eastern Time. Stay safe.
