
Save the Children CEO from Gaza: “Starvation Is Already Happening”
Clip: 3/27/2024 | 17m 58sVideo has Closed Captions
Janti Soeripto discusses the situation on the ground in Rafah, Gaza.
A senior U.S. defense official says that there has been a "significant increase" in the amount of aid flowing into Gaza, with an average of 200 trucks entering a day — almost double what it was in February. However, according to a recent IPC report, Gaza is on the brink of famine. The situation is clearly desperate. Janti Soeripto, the head of Save the Children U.S., joins the show from Rafah.
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Save the Children CEO from Gaza: “Starvation Is Already Happening”
Clip: 3/27/2024 | 17m 58sVideo has Closed Captions
A senior U.S. defense official says that there has been a "significant increase" in the amount of aid flowing into Gaza, with an average of 200 trucks entering a day — almost double what it was in February. However, according to a recent IPC report, Gaza is on the brink of famine. The situation is clearly desperate. Janti Soeripto, the head of Save the Children U.S., joins the show from Rafah.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship>>> AND MORE NOW ON THE TIRE HUMANITARIAN SITUATION IN GAZA A SENIOR U.S. DEFENSE OFFICIAL SAYS THAT THERE HAS BEEN A, QUOTE, SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT OF AID FLOWING INTO THE ENCLAVE, WITH AN AVERAGE OF 200 TRUCKS ENTERING A DAY, ALMOST DOUBLE WHAT IT WAS IN FEBRUARY, BUT AS AT LEAST 12 PEOPLE DROWNED OFF THE COAST OF NORTHERN GAZA WHILE TRYING TO RECEIVE AID DROP PARCELLS THAT HAD FALLEN INTO THE SEA ON MONDAY.
OBVIOUSLY, THE SITUATION IS CLEARLY STILL DESPERATE.
THE HEAD OF SAVE THE CHILDREN U.S. TELLS HARI NOW WHAT IT'S LIKE WHERE SHE IS IN RAFAH.
>> JANTI SOERIPTO, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
GIVE US AN IDEA WHAT YOU'VE SEEN TODAY.
>> THANK YOU, HARI, FOR HAVING ME.
LOOK, WHAT I WALKED THROUGH TODAY WAS ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE'VE SEEN ON OUR TELEVISION SCREENS, BUT THERE'S NOTHING LIKE BEING UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL AND SEEING IT HERE.
IN RAFAH, THERE ARE LITERALLY PEOPLE EVERYWHERE, THERE ARE TENTS EVERYWHERE, THERE ARE CHILDREN EVERYWHERE, RUNNING AROUND, MANY OF THEM WITHOUT SHOES ON.
SOME ARE PLAYING, SOME ARE TRYING TO FIND FOOD, SOME ARE JUST, YOU KNOW, RUNNING AROUND, AS CHILDREN DO, BUT THERE'S AN UNBELIEVABLE SIGHT TO HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE IN SUCH A SMALL SPACE TOGETHER.
IT IS DIFFICULT TO LITERALLY MAKE OUR WAY THROUGH BY CAR, IT'S CERTAINLY DIFFICULT FOR AID ORGANIZATIONS TO GET THEIR SUPPLIES THROUGH, IF YOU'RE DRIVING TRUCKS.
AND IT IS JUST A MASSIVE SCENE OF, ESSENTIALLY PEOPLE IN HUMANITARIAN NEED.
>> SO, WHAT IS THE INFRASTRUCTURE THERE?
IS IT STRAINING UNDER THE WEIGHT OF ALL OF THESE PEOPLE?
I MEAN, IS THERE POWER, WATER, LIGHT, AND HOW ARE PEOPLE GETTING FOOD?
>> ALL OF THE ABOVE.
SO, MASSIVE, OF COURSE, LACK OF CLEAN DRINKING WATER, WHICH IS, OF COURSE, ONE OF THE BIGGEST ISSUES, PARTICULARLY IN TERMS OF HEALTH AND DISEASE.
I SAW MANY KIDS TODAY WITH RASHES, THERE'S LOTS OF COUGHING, RESPIRATORY DISEASES, THERE'S KIDS PRESENTING WITH HEPATITIS, DIARRHEA, ET CETERA.
YOU SEE KIDS THAT ARE REALLY MALNOURISHED.
THERE'S NOT ENOUGH FOOD.
THE IPC NUMBERS THAT CAME OUT LAST WEEK WERE SHOCKING AND RECORD BREAKING IN THE WORST SENSE OF THE WORD.
THOSE NUMBERS HAVE NOT BEEN RECORDED EVER ANYWHERE TO THAT EXTENT.
ESSENTIALLY EVERYBODY IN GAZA CURRENTLY IS SKIPPING MEALS, AND IN PARTICULAR, MOTHERS WILL SKIP MEALS, AND MOTHERS ALWAYS EAT LAST, BECAUSE THEY ARE TRYING TO SAVE SOME OF THE FOOD FOR THEIR CHILDREN.
>> YOU'RE STARTING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THOSE CHOICES.
WHAT ARE THE CHOICES THAT FAMILIES ARE HAVING TO MAKE NOW TO KEEP THEIR KIDS FED?
>> SO, THEY'RE SKIPPING MEALS.
YOU KNOW, YOU -- YOU ALWAYS HEAR HORRIFIC STORIES ABOUT THE CHOICES THAT DOCTORS HAVE TO MAKE.
I WAS TALKING TO A FEW DOCTORS EARLIER TODAY IN ONE OF THE FIELD HOSPITALS, AND YOU KNOW, THEY SEE -- THEY HAVE BABIES IN INCUBATORS, THREE TO FOUR AT A TIME, BECAUSE THERE'S NOT ENOUGH SPACE FOR THEM.
DOCTORS HAVE TO MAKE REALLY DIFFICULT CHOICES TO SAY, WHICH BABY SHOULD WE SAVE AND WHICH BABY ARE WE SENDING HOME, KNOWING THAT THE BABY WILL DIE?
180 BABIES A DAY ARE BORN IN GAZA.
OF COURSE, MANY OF THEM ARE PREMATURELY BORN, AS WELL, BECAUSE MOTHERS ARE IN DISTRESS, UNDERNOURISHED.
AND A LOT OF THOSE BABIES GET SENT HOME TO DIE.
MOTHERS FOREGOING FOOD TO SAVE FOR THEIR CHILDREN.
THEY'RE SPENDING HOURS AND HOURS TO FIND A WAY TO GO TO THE BATHROOM, BECAUSE THERE'S ONLY ONE BATHROOM FOR ROUGHLY 800 TO 1,000 PEOPLE.
THEY HAVE TO FIND WOOD IN ORDER TO FIND SOMETHING TO COOK WITH, IF THEY ARE LUCKY ENOUGH TO ACTUALLY FIND SOME INGREDIENTS.
SO, THAT IS, YOU KNOW, DAILY LIFE IN GAZA AT THIS POINT IN TIME.
>> JANTI, WHAT DO THE CHILDREN SAY TO THE AID WORKERS THAT THEY SEE?
>> THEY -- LOOK, KIDS ALWAYS WANT TO BE CHILDREN.
I SAW, YOU KNOW, AMAZING BUNCH OF KIDS TODAY.
ONLY THE ONE, THEY WANT -- IT WAS PRETTY COLD, THEY HAD NO SHOES, SO, SOME WANT SHOES, SOME WANT -- ALL OF THEM WANT FOOD OR WATER.
AND THEY ARE ALSO MISSING SCHOOL.
RIGHT?
AND THAT IS SOMETIME SEEN AS SORT OF A SECONDARY PRIORITY, WHICH, IN OUR MIND, IT IS NOT, BECAUSE EDUCATION IS ALSO A FANTASTIC INTERVENTION TO HELP CHILDREN PROCESS TRAUMA.
IN A WAY, ALSO A MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTION.
I WAS TALKING TO THIS MOM EARLIER TODAY, AND SHE SAID TO ME, IT WAS REALLY STRIKING, SHE SAID, I NEED MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT MORE THAN FOOD.
EVERYBODY IS HUNGRY.
STARVATION IS ALREADY HAPPENING, PARTICULARLY IN THE NORTH, YET, SHE STILL SAID, SHE FELT THAT SHE NEEDED MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT MORE.
>> NOW, I SEE THE DEFINITION OF FAMINE BY THE INTEGRATED FOOD SECURITY PHASE CLASSIFICATION, THE IPC, AT LEAST 20% OF HOUSEHOLDS ARE FACING A LACK OF FOOD, WOULD YOU SAY THAT'S THERE?
>> YES.
>> OKAY.
30% OF CHILDREN ARE SUFFERING FROM MALNUTRITION, DID 3 OUT OF 10 OF THE KIDS YOU SAW TODAY LOOK MALL NOURISHED?
>> YES.
>> AND AT LEAST TWO PEOPLE PER 10,000DYING EACH DAY FROM STARVATION OR DISEASE.
THAT'S A HARDER NUMBER TO QUANTIFY, BUT WHAT DO YOU HEAR FROM THE HEALTH OFFICIALS THAT ARE WORKING ON THE GROUND?
>> YEAH, THAT IS A HARDER ONE TO QUANTIFY, BECAUSE TRACKING OF THE DATA IS HARD HERE CURRENTLY.
HOW PEOPLE CLASSIFY DEATHS, ARE THEY, YOU KNOW, TRAUMA-RELATED, NON-TRAUMA-RELATED, THAT IS A HARDER ONE TO CRACK.
IF YOU LOOK -- IF YOU REALLY READ THAT IPC REPORT CAREFULLY, AND I READ ALL 44 PAGES OF IT, THERE IS -- YOU KNOW, IT'S A REALLY TECHNICAL, YOU KNOW, WELL-ESTABLISHED, WELL-EXPERIENCED MECHANISM.
THEY'VE BEEN VERY CONSERVATIVE, I WOULD SAY, IN HOW THEY PHRASE IT, SO, ALL KINDS OF CAVEATS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFICULTY OF ACTUALLY CONFIRMING THE DATA, YOU KNOW, IN PERSONAL, BUT THEY SAY THERE IS A REASONABLE, YOU KNOW, IT'S A VERY REASONABLE EVIDENCE THAT FAMINE IS OCCURRING.
SO, I THINK THAT IS A VERY STRONG STATEMENT.
IT'S ALSO, YOU KNOW, THE KIDS THAT I SAW TODAY WERE IN THE SOUTH, AND WE KNOW THAT THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH IS STILL MUCH, MUCH WORSE, BECAUSE THEY'VE HAD MUCH LESS AID COME THROUGH THERE.
>> MY QUESTION, I GUESS, IS, EVEN IF WE CROSS THOSE THRESHOLDS INTO THE STATE OF FAMINE, DOES THAT CHANGE ANYTHING?
>> NO.
SO, FROM OUR POINT OF VIEW, WE NEED TO RESPOND NOW, AND GET MUCH, MUCH MORE AID IN.
START MALNUTRITION TREATMENT FOR CHILDREN NOW, BECAUSE NO MATTER WHEN THIS THRESHOLD, THIS TECHNICAL THRESHOLD IS CROSSED, IT DOESN'T MATTER.
THEY'RE STARVING NOW.
PEOPLE WILL STILL DIE IN A FEW WEEKS TIME, EVEN IF YOU START NOW, BECAUSE FOR SOME, IT WILL BE TOO LATE.
>> WHAT ARE THE LONGER TERM CHALLENGES THAT HAPPEN AFTER SOMETHING LIKE THIS?
I MEAN, I WANT TO HOPE, LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, THAT THE ACTUAL IMMEDIATE CONFLICT SUBSIDES, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AROUND AT THESE KIDS WHO, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THEM WHO HAVE PHYSICAL INJURIES AND RASHES FROM CLOSE QUARTERS AND UNHYGIENIC CONDITIONS, TO THE ONES WHO HAVE NOT HAD SCHOOL AND THE ONES, AS YOU SAID, THE MOM WHO WAS ASKING FOR MENTAL HEALTH, WHAT ARE THE KIND OF STRUCTURAL AND LONGER TERM PROBLEMS THAT ARISE WHEN YOU HAVE THIS KIND OF MASSIVE DISPLACEMENT AND INTERNAL MIGRATION AND STARVATION?
>> YEAH, LOOK, THESE KIDS HAVE SEEN THINGS THAT NO CHILD SHOULD EVER SEE, AND IT'S NOT JUST -- THE NUMBERS ARE SO STAGGERING.
IT'S A MILLION CHILDREN.
13,000 KIDS HAVE DIED.
MANY THOUSANDS MORE HAVE LIFE-CHANGING INJURIES.
I WAS REALLY SHOCKED BY THE FACT THAT OVER 1,000 KIDS ARE REPORTED TO HAVE LOST ONE OR TWO LIMBS.
WHEN I SPEAK TO DOCTORS ABOUT THAT.
YOU KNOW, THAT IN AND OF ITSELF IS A LIFE-CHANGING INJURY, IT'S OFTEN, YOU KNOW, DIFFICULT TO TREAT IT APPROPRIATELY, ET CETERA.
SO, WE SEE THAT, WE SEE THE MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT.
KIDS THAT ARE MALNOURISHED, PARTICULARLY YOUNG CHILDREN UNDER 2, THAT HAS A LIFELONG IMPACT ON THEIR MENTAL AND PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT.
SO, IT WILL TAKE AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF MANPOWER, FUNDING, TO -- TO CLEAR THE STREETS OF RUBBLE, THE AMOUNT OF RUBBLE THAT'S OVER HERE IN THE NORTH IS, ACCORDING TO REPORTS, MUCH, MUCH WORSE.
GET THE RUBBLE OUT OF THE WAY, REBUILD, REBUILD THE SCHOOLS, REBUILD THE WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, REBUILD HOMES, IT WILL TAKE MANY, MANY YEARS, AND AT THE SAME TIME, YOU ALSO NEED TO REBUILD THIS CIVILIAN POPULATION, PARTICULARLY THE YOUNGER ONES.
TO HELP THEM RECOVER FROM TRAUMA, TO PROCESS IT, TO CATCH UP THEIR LIVES, YES, THEIR EDUCATION, AND THEIR WAY OF INTERACTING.
>> THE REPORT LAST WEEK SAID THAT EVEN IN NORTHERN GAZA, THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY HERE TO TRY AND STOP FAMINE FROM SPREADING, IF WE CAN TRY TO GET WATER AND NUTRITION PRODUCTS, MEDICINES, HEALTH, SANITATION, THERE.
I'M WONDERING, SEEING WHAT YOU'VE SEEN, IS IT POSSIBLE TO STAND UP THAT INFRASTRUCTURE FAST ENOUGH BEFORE THIS GETS WORSE?
>> YES.
IF EVERYBODY MAKES THE RIGHT CHOICES, ABSOLUTELY.
THERE IS A ROAD -- THERE ARE VARIOUS ROADS INTO THE NORTH OF GAZA.
WE NEED TO FLOOD THE NORTH OF GAZA WITH FOOD, WITH WATER, WITH BASIC NECESSITIES.
THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF TRUCKS WAITING, JUST LITERALLY, 20 KILOMETERS DOWN THE ROAD HERE, THAT CAN GO IN AND ACTUALLY MAKE THOSE DELIVERIES INTO NORTHERN GAZA.
THERE ARE COMMUNITY LEADERS THERE WHO CAN HELP WITH THE DISTRIBUTION, SO, IT IS ABSOLUTELY POSSIBLE TO GET THAT LEVEL OF SUPPLIES IN THAT ARE NEEDED TO MAKE THE BEST EFFORT TO STAVE AFTER FAMINE AND STARVATION.
>> THERE IS A COORDINATED COALITION?
ARE YOU WORKING WITH DIFFERENT AGENCIES, DIFFERENT GOVERNMENTS, TO TRY TO GET FOOD IN?
>> YES.
I MEAN, THERE IS COORDINATION HERE, WE ACTUALLY -- I MET SOME OF THEM THIS MORNING, U.N.
AGENCIES, WORLD FOOD PROGRAM, AND THERE IS A REAL EFFORT FROM EVERYBODY TO -- TO SHARE INFORMATION, TO SHARE SUPPLIES, TO HELP EACH OTHER OUT, TO COMBINE TRUCKS, SUPPLIES, TO COMBINE, YOU KNOW, INTO THE NORTH, SO, THERE IS A REAL, YOU KNOW -- THERE IS COLLABORATION, THERE'S ALSO SOMETIMES A SCRAMBLE FOR THAT INFORMATION, BECAUSE IT IS VERY UNPREDICTABLE, THE LEVEL OF VIOLENCE AND BOMBING IS STILL UNPREDICTABLE.
NOT WITHSTANDING THE RESOLUTION.
SO, IT -- THERE IS COORDINATION, BUT IT IS STILL UNBELIEVABLY HARD.
WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE 40 TRUCKS A DAY GO INTO THE NORTH OF GAZA.
WE WERE SUPER HAPPY EARLIER THIS WEEK TO FIND OUT WE GOT SEVEN TRUCKS IN.
SO, THAT GIVES YOU A SENSE OF THE GAP THAT STILL EXISTS, IF WE REALLY WANT TO STAVE OFF FAMINE.
>> IN A RECENT JOINT LETTER BY NGOs, YOU SAID, IT'S OUR EXPERIENCE THAT THE HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE IN GAZA, INCLUDING U.S.-FUNDED HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE, HAS BEEN CONSISTENTLY AND ARBITRARILY DENIED, RESTRICTED, AND IMPEDED BY THE ISRAELI AUTHORITIES.
AND I'M WONDERING, THIS GROUP OF ORGANIZATIONS, YOURSELF INCLUDED, DO YOU THINK THAT THAT EFFORT TO IMPEDE AID IS INTENTIONAL?
>> WELL, I THINK THE OUTCOMES ARE CERTAINLY KNOWN, RIGHT?
SO, IF -- IF PEOPLE KNOW WHAT THE OUTCOMES ARE OF HAVING 50 TRUCKS COME INTO GAZA INSTEAD OF THE 500 THAT THERE WERE BEFORE, OF HAVING ONLY 30% OF THE REQUIRED AUTHORIZATIONS OF GETTING AID INTO THE NORTH COME THROUGH, IF, YOU KNOW, IF -- IF -- EVEN WITH A U.N.
RESOLUTION ON THE TABLE, THE BOMBS ARE STILL NOT SILENT.
YOU KNOW, THAT IS CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, NOT TRYING TO MITIGATE LOSS OF CIVILIAN LIVES.
AS IS EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT MORE CHILDREN HAVE DIED OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS THAN IN ALL CONFLICTS COMBINED EVERY YEAR FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
>> WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE KIND OF NEED, IS THE INTERNATIONAL AID COMMUNITY GEARED UP TO BE ABLE TO TACKLE THIS SCALE OF A PROBLEM THIS FAST?
>> IF THERE'S A CEASE-FIRE, AND IT IS POSSIBLE TO DO MORE THINGS IN A SAFE AND SECURE MANNER, I THINK THE HUMANITARIAN COMMUNITY, PLUS THE COMMERCIAL SECTOR, COULD ACTUALLY STEP UP TO THAT CHALLENGE.
THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF TRUCKS EVEN WAITING NOW, AS WE SPEAK, THAT COULD COME IN, THAT ARE READY, THAT HAVE FOOD.
AND HYGIENE KITS.
AND SHELTERS, AND INCUBATORS AND GENERATORS AND WHATEVER ELSE A HOSPITAL NEEDS TO ACTUALLY OPERATE, OR WHAT A DISSEMINATION PLANT NEEDS IN ORDER TO BE REBUILT SO CLEAN WATER CAN START TO FLOW AGAIN.
SO, ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE ACTUALLY NOT ROCKET SCIENCE AT ALL.
AND THAT SUPPLY CHAIN IS -- IS THERE.
WE CAN DO IT VIA EGYPT, WE CAN DO IT VIA JORDAN, WE CAN DO IT VIA CYPRUS.
AND I THINK THAT IS WHAT THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY COMBINED WITH THE PHENOMENAL LOCAL PARTNERS ON THE GROUND CAN ACTUALLY DO WHEN WE'RE ALLOWED TO DO IT.
>> YOU KNOW, JUST TWO DAYS AGO, SAVE THE CHILDREN ALONG WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS PUT OUT A RELEASE, SAYING THAT THERE IS A CONTINUED CLOSURE OF VITAL BORDER CROSSINGS, THERE IS STILL A DENIAL OF MOVEMENT REQUESTS WITHIN GAZA THERE HAVE BEEN REPEATED ATTACKS ON AID WORKERS, CONVOYS, AND DISTRIBUTIONS, AND EVEN HUMANITARIAN SITES THAT HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO ISRAELI AUTHORITIES AS PART OF DECON FLIX.
ARE YOU STILL SEEING THAT AID WORKERS ARE IN DANGER WHEN THEY ARE TRYING TO GET FOOD AND SUPPLIES INTO RAFAH OR GAZA?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
ABSOLUTELY.
WE HEAR THAT ALL THE TIME, JUST FROM OUR OWN STAFF, BUT ALSO FROM OTHER AGENCIES AND PARTNERS.
OUR LOCAL PARTNERS THAT ARE STILL OPERATING IN THE NORTH, AS WELL AS IN THE SOUTH, THE DECON FLIX MECHANISM IS STILL NOT WORKING ENOUGH AND NOT PREDICTABLY, SO, YES, COORDINATES ARE GIVEN, THEY ARE CONFIRMED, AND YET, STILL SOMETIMES ATTACKS DO HAPPEN.
ON CONVOYS, OFFICES, WAREHOUSES, HOSPITALS, CLEARLY.
AND THAT MAKES, YOU KNOW, AND THAT LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY IN THE OPERATION, HOW TO GET THE TRUCKS UP TO THE NORTH, HOW TO GET THE NUMBER OF DRIVERS WHO CAN DRIVE THE TRUCKS AUTHORIZED TO GO UP TO THE NORTH, AND THEN TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU DO NOT GET ATTACKED WHILE DOING IT, WHILE DELIVERING THAT AID, THAT ALL MAKES THIS OPERATION INKROED BLY COMPLICATED AND DANGEROUS.
>> YOU'VE LAID OUT THE NEED, AND THEN, THERE'S STILL A GAP BETWEEN THAT AND WHAT MIGHT BE A POLITICAL REALITY, OR A TACTICAL REALITY.
PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU SAYS THAT THERE ARE PLANS, THEY MAY BE IMMINENT, TO TRY TO, YOU KNOW, PUSH INTO RAFAH.
WHAT WOULD A FULL-SCALE INVASION OF THAT AREA DO TO THE PLACE THAT YOU WALKED THROUGH TODAY?
>> WELL, I'VE BEEN SAYING FOR, YOU KNOW, A NUMBER OF WEEKS NOW, THAT EVERY TIME I GET ASKED THIS QUESTION, IT CAN'T GET ANY WORSE, AND EVERY WEEK, I'VE BEEN PROVEN WRONG.
EVERY WEEK, IT'S GOTTEN WORSE.
AND IT WOULD BE AN ABSOLUTELY UNMITIGATED DISASTER.
THERE'S 1.4 MILLION PEOPLE IN RAFAH, A TOWN WHERE THERE WERE 200,000 BEFORE.
IT'S COPLETELY OVERRUN ALREADY.
THERE IS NO REASONABLE, I THINK, OR ADEQUATE PLAN YOU CAN DO FOR MASS EVACUATION OF THAT MANY PEOPLE.
AND BY THE WAY, WHERE ARE THEY GOING TO GO?
THEY CAN'T CROSS THE BORDER.
THEY CAN'T RUN INTO THE SEA.
THEY CAN'T REALLY GO BACK UP NORTH, BECAUSE IT IS COMPLETELY DESTROYED, AND THERE'S LOTS OF UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE THERE.
SO, THEY'RE STUCK HERE.
THERE IS NO REALISTIC EVACUATION PLAN.
SO, A MASS INCURSION INTO RAFAH WOULD BE A MASSACRE.
>> WHAT DO PEOPLE THERE AND WHAT DO CHILDREN THERE NEED THE MOST RIGHT NOW?
>> THEY NEED PEACE.
THEY NEED A CEASE-FIRE.
THEY NEED BOMBS TO STOP FALLING, THEY NEED THE SHELLING TO STOP SO THAT EVERYBODY CAN TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND THEN HUMANITARIAN WORKERS AND THE COMMERCIAL SECTOR CAN START TO REALLY FLOOD GAZA WITH THE NECESSARY SUPPLIES.
HUMANITARIAN SUPPLIES, COMMERCIAL SUPPLIES, SO THAT WE CAN START TO REBUILD LIVES, TREAT PEOPLE ADEQUATELY, HAVE PEOPLE SUPPORTED IN THEIR MENTAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOSOCIAL NEEDS.
GET CHILDREN BACK INTO SCHOOL.
RESTART HOSPITALS, ESSENTIALLY REBUILD GAZA.
>> JANTI, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME, HARI.

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