In late April the spokesman of the Israeli army (IDF) published an interview with Mathilde Redmatn, deputy director of the Red Cross in Gaza. According to this article Redmatn says that there is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza, life seems to be reasonably normal, products are available in shops, there are restaurants and even a beautiful beach.
The Israeli press (such as the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz and Arutz Sheva) as well as numerous predominantly pro-Israel websites reported on the interview. Many were eager to state that the reports available up to now, not only by the Red Cross but by the UN and the World Bank for instance as well, were grossly exaggerating when describing the situation of Gaza, as illustrated by headlines such as ‘The Red Cross admits…’. As if by magic the Red Cross transformed from an organization sometimes accused of being biased into the messenger of the truth.
As is often the case, reality is not that simple. The article was published by a party in the conflict: the IDF. The message seems to run counter to recent publications from the same source (the Red Cross, or rather: the ICRC, the International Committee of the Red Cross), which show a very worrying picture of Gaza.
That’s a situation demanding counterchecking the information, which is exactly what I did when I contacted ICRC’s Jerusalem office, which is responsible for promoting compliance with humanitarian law in Israel and the Occupied Territories. I asked them to comment on the statements made by their employee Mathilde De Riedmatten. ICRC spokesman Cecilia Goin emailed me from Jerusalem:
‘the article was edited and therefore, does not reflect ICRC’s view of the current humanitarian situation in Gaza. Independently from what has been reported, what is important is that the situation is grave and serious.’
Why she refers to the situation as ‘grave and serious’ is made clear by what she wrote more:
‘Regarding the article published by IDF web site please be aware that it contains many inaccuracies and, as such, does not fully reflect ICRC’s view of the situation in Gaza. The life of 1.5 million people in the Strip is far from being a normal and dignified life. The extremely high unemployment rate, the lack of freedom of movement, the problematic access to healthcare, clean water and sanitation, as well as the continuous threat of violence affects the lives of Gaza people on a daily basis. In addition, an almost absolute ban on exports and limited imports hamper a sustainable economic recovery, which is essential to any viable development.’
In The Netherlands tv station PowNed and others mentioned the article. In Dutch parliament the new ‘Red Cross position’ was raised by the spokespersons of Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party and the ruling Party for Freedom and Democracy in a debate about the upcoming second Gaza Flotilla. The Freedom Party’s spokesperson went so far as to say that there is no suffering because the Gazans’ life expectancy is good. The line of argumentation was simple: if there is no humanitarian crisis, there is no need for humanitarian assistance and therefore an aid convoy would not be necessary. Foreign Affairs secretary Uri Rosenthal was apparently referring to the IDF article when he stated that the Red Cross does not label the situation in Gaza as an absolute emergency. And other parties’ spokesmen did not give the impression that they checked the article at the source: the Red Cross as well.
Had they done so, then just like Joop (Dutch opinion site) editor Hasna El Maroudi they would have found that The Netherlands Red Cross distances itself from the IDF reports. Had they verified, then the ICRC spokeswoman would have told them that the IDF article contains many inaccuracies and was edited, and as such does not reflect ICRC’s view on the current humanitarian situation in Gaza. A situation that ICRC still characterizes as ‘ grave and serious’, ‘far from being a normal and dignified life’.
The spokeswoman pointed out to me a couple of recent ICRC articles that do portray the alarming humanitarian situation in Gaza accurately. Three months ago the organization reported that despite the easing of the closure and the partial lifting of export bans, continued restrictions on the movement of people and difficulties in importing building materials still hamper sustainable economic recovery and dash any hope of leading a normal and dignified life. According to the World Bank 2010 data, the unemployment rate remained stubbornly high at 39 per cent.
Gaza is still facing a drugs shortage and as well as a serious electricity shortage. Power cuts during treatment puts dialysis patients at great risk. This could be treated by medication, but the necessary drugs are not available. Patients with other chronic diseases such as haemophilia and cancer are experiencing the same problems. Power fluctuations take a heavy toll on medical machines, resulting in frequent breakdowns. To make the necessary repairs spare parts are needed, but there is a shortage and import takes several months. Gaza’s one and only power station experiences the same problem: it was partially destroyed by Israeli shelling in 2006 and the building materials required to carry out repairs are not allowed in. Backup generators require scarce fuel. Nevertheless 43 thousand patients received emergency surgical care or treatment at the Artificial Limbs and Polio Centre, mainly thanks to the ICRC, which in 2010 supplied 242 tonnes of drugs, disposables, consumables, spare parts, training and technical assistance to the health ministry for hospitals in Gaza.
The water and sanitation infrastructure is problematic as well. Every day, thousands of liters of untreated wastewater are dumped into the Wadi Gaza. The water snakes through densely populated urban areas on its way to the sea, jeopardizing the health of the population and exposing them to parasites such as amoebae and giardia. On top of that, the wastewater is contaminating the coastline and endangering biodiversity. The quality of drinking water is deteriorating rapidly, with nitrate and chloride levels up to seven times above the level set by the World Health Organization. Much of the water from the Gaza aquifer is undrinkable and gradually becoming more saline. Rehabilitation of the water and sanitation infrastructure requires spare parts and building materials such as cement, steel and water pipes which are still scarce because of the restrictions on the import of construction materials.
Mathilde De Riedmatten of the ICRC in Gaza is concerned about the fact that the one and a half million people in Gaza are unable to live a normal and dignified life as well. In an interview on the ICRC website published mid-May she not only notes the abovementioned factors, but also points to the structural violence and its impact on the civilian population of Gaza. Her statements include the following:
‘Gaza is more dependent than ever on outside aid. For young people – fully 50 per cent of Gaza’s 1.5 million residents are under 18 years of age – there is a crushing lack of prospects, and it is a constant struggle for them to maintain hope in the future.
The strict limits on imports and the almost absolute ban on exports imposed by Israel make economic recovery impossible. The unemployment rate currently stands at nearly 40 per cent. It will remain ruinously high as long as the economy fails to recover. This difficult situation exacerbates the considerable hardship already caused by the collapse of previously prosperous branches of the economy.
Over the years, access to land suitable for agriculture has been eroded by restrictions imposed in the areas near Israel and the levelling of land and destruction of trees by the Israel Defense Forces. To make matters worse, the high price or even total lack of some farm inputs such as fertilizer, pesticides, etc., and the lack of export opportunities have weighed heavily on the primary sector. In addition, many fishermen have lost their livelihood as a result of Israel reducing the area at sea within which it allows fishing to three nautical miles from Gaza’s coastline.
Because Israel retains effective control over the Gaza Strip, in particular by maintaining authority over the movement of people and goods, it must fulfil its obligations under the law of occupation and allow the civilian population to lead as normal a life as possible.’
Johanna Nouri is a Dutch blogger, married to a Jordanian. Her main topics are the Middle East, the humitarian impact of war and violence, migration and islam. She works as a project manager, trainer and consultant in non-governmental organizations for war trauma and refugees.
