The Humanitarian Coalition welcomes the first phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza and calls for the immediate cessation of hostilities. More than two years of daily bombings and attacks have decimated Gaza, resulting in a massive humanitarian crisis and a devastating famine in Gaza City. A rapid surge in unfettered and safe humanitarian access is crucial for meeting the urgent needs of the entire population, which exceeds two million people.
After more than two years of daily bombings and attacks in Gaza:
- More than 67,000 people are confirmed to have been killed, including more than 20,000 children
- More than 170,000 people have been injured
- 2 million people have been forced from their homes by violence
- More than 500,000 people are experiencing catastrophic hunger
- 89% of Gaza's water and sanitation infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, leaving more than 90% of households water insecure
Our members stand ready to scale up their response by providing lifesaving food, water, emergency health services, psychosocial support, shelter and protection services to women, children and men across the Gaza Strip. Despite the extremely challenging humanitarian and security situation over the past two years, our members have been actively responding to this crisis — many of them have been addressing humanitarian needs in Gaza for decades.
We continue to call for the upholding of international humanitarian law and the immediate release of all unjustly detained people and hostages. We fervently hope that this latest announcement will lead to a permanent and lasting peace.
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For media inquiries, contact us at 647-571-4563 or media@humanitariancoalition.ca
The Humanitarian Coalition (HC) brings together leading aid organizations to provide Canadians with a simple and effective way to donate during large-scale humanitarian emergencies. The HC also partners with Global Affairs Canada to enable its member agencies to respond to lesser-known small and medium-scale disasters.