A humanitarian crisis is growing in the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza.  A full 22% of Palestinian children under the age of 5 have been found to be suffering from malnutrition.  Nearly 16% are suffering from anemia, many of whom will suffer from permanent negative effects on their physical and mental development as a result.  This is the findings of a study sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and John Hopkins University, cited in a report put out by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.   

  “There is a humanitarian crisis in the West Bank and Gaza.  It is not the result of a natural disaster.  Instead, it is a crisis imposed by a powerful State on its neighbor”, reads the UN report cited above.  The reason for this is the total collapse of the Palestinian economy due to the Israeli military policies of closures, curfews, and other restrictions of the movement of people, goods, and services.  This is echoed by the International Red Cross, which has decided to end its distribution of relief aid in the territories and instead insists that the “Palestinians’ basic rights under international humanitarian law are respected”.  

  It is clear that what is needed most in Palestine is not food distribution by charitable groups, but an end to an occupation that is a terrible war crime. 

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