“Today's adoption of Security Council Resolution 2730 calling for the protection of humanitarian workers and the International Court of Justice's order to open the Rafah crossing to provide massive assistance and deter military attacks on the site provide clarity to the situation,” he said in a statement.
“Now is the time to demand respect for the rules of war, which must be followed by all. Civilians must have the right to safety. Humanitarian assistance must be facilitated unhindered. Aid workers and UN staff must be able to carry out their duties safely.”
Before the offensive began on May 6, more than one million people had taken refuge in Rafah, southern Gaza.
Griffiths said the ground invasion was an “unspeakable tragedy” and that more than 800,000 people have been forced to flee again, arriving in areas without proper shelter, toilets or clean water.
“This has cut off the flow of aid to southern Gaza, further crippling an already stretched humanitarian operation,” he said.
Food distribution in the south has been halted and fuel supplies to “Gaza's lifelines – its bakeries, hospitals and wells” have been reduced to trickles.
Heed the call
“Israel has rejected international calls to spare Rafah, but the global voice calling for an immediate end to this attack is too loud to ignore,” he said, referring to developments in the Security Council and the U.N. Supreme Court on Friday.
“When the people of Gaza face hunger, when hospitals are under attack and invaded, when aid organizations can't reach those in need, when civilians are being bombed from north to south, it is more important than ever to heed the calls that have been made over the past seven months: Release the hostages. Agree to a ceasefire. End this nightmare.”
Fuel shortages in Gaza hospitals put newborns at risk
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Friday that aid groups had delivered around 15,000 litres of fuel to Al-Aqsa Hospital in the Gaza Strip.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned that an unstable fuel supply could cause the hospital's oxygen generators to stop working, putting the lives of more than 20 newborns at risk.
“As hostilities escalate, it is vital that more fuel flows into the Gaza Strip to allow humanitarian organizations to operate safely,” OCHA said.
Meanwhile, Al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza remains partially functional but inaccessible.
Gaza's remaining medical facilities are struggling to operate due to continuing shortages of fuel, equipment and medical supplies.
Since Israeli forces launched an offensive into Rafah governorate about three weeks ago, the delivery of aid supplies into the enclave has been severely restricted.
Since then, more than 900 aid trucks have entered Gaza, including about 800 loaded with food.
A malnourished child receives treatment at Justinian University Hospital in Cap Aytien, Haiti.
Half of Haiti could be on the brink of starvation by June
The number of people facing severe food insecurity in Haiti could reach a record high of 5 million, or half the population, by the end of June.
OCHA said prices of staple foods remain high in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and surrounding areas amid an already dire food security situation and widespread gang violence.
In mid-April, food prices in Ouest department, where Port-au-Prince is located, were 20 percent higher than in January.
The situation has not improved since then, with a resurgence in gang-related violence leading to shortages of basic goods putting pressure on prices, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
If domestic agricultural production does not improve and the unstable situation continues, staple food prices are likely to remain high for the rest of the year.
Since early March, the World Food Programme (WFP) has provided hot meals to around 100,000 displaced people in 80 locations in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.
