By Jennifer Rigby and Christy Santhosh
(Reuters) -The World Health Organization called for the international community to step up and fund a scaled-up aid response in Gaza after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal to end 15 months of war in the region earlier this week.
The U.N. health agency said its member states, donors and the global community, including the private sector, should support both the urgent health needs and the longer-term rebuilding of Gaza’s healthcare system.
“The UN cannot deliver the response alone,” said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Part of the ceasefire deal requires 600 truckloads of humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza every day. Peeperkorn said WHO was ready to deliver, although the “significant security and political obstacles to delivering aid across Gaza” need to be removed.
“Now is the time for member states, donors and the global community to step up and provide flexible funding to enable this swift and effective response for urgent and longer term needs,” he said.
(Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru and Jennifer Rigby; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Toby Chopra)
