'Only political solution' can bring end to violence ravaging Israel & Gaza since the 7th of October
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00:00 Well, to talk more with me now about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, let's bring in Lucienne
00:04 Mabou, spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross.
00:07 Lucienne, thank you so much for taking the time to speak to us.
00:10 First of all, what are you hearing from your teams on the ground at the moment?
00:14 What's the situation like now in Khan Younes, Gaza's second largest city?
00:19 The situation is just absolutely dire.
00:21 We have a team of surgeons who are operating in the European Gaza Hospital, which is in
00:28 Khan Younes, and saying that the situation is absolutely chaotic, desperate.
00:34 Before the resuming of the hostilities already, the hospital was overstretched, because also
00:39 they had received many patients from the north in devastating situations, carrying out a
00:44 lot of amputations.
00:46 And now it's just another influx, again, of wounded, severely wounded people who are arriving.
00:52 And a doctor there was saying that now there's a list, a waiting list of 360 patients to
00:59 be able to be operated, that injuries are getting infected, which makes that there are
01:04 more and more amputations which could have been prevented.
01:08 And the medical supplies are absolutely dwindling, anesthetics, painkillers.
01:13 So the situation is just becoming unmanageable, basically, for medical staff today.
01:19 So you mentioned this, the aid that's dwindling.
01:23 Is that in part due to the military movement?
01:26 Has that blocked any new aid that could be sent in?
01:29 Unfortunately, whether during the ceasefire or before, there was never enough assistance
01:35 going through Rafa to meet the huge needs of the population in Gaza.
01:41 Now you have to think it's 1.8 million people now who are displaced.
01:46 More are being again displaced.
01:48 So we're having people who have been multiply displaced and don't feel safe anywhere.
01:52 And the shelters are extremely precarious.
01:55 And the humanitarian organizations like the International Committee of the Red Cross today
01:58 just don't have enough supplies in terms of food, water, hygiene items.
02:04 Access to health is becoming more and more limited.
02:09 And humanitarians just don't have the necessary resources to be able to respond to these huge
02:15 needs.
02:16 So of course, assistance needs to finally massively come in.
02:20 But what we're also requesting is, to all parties, is the protection of civilians.
02:25 And this is also linked to the conduct of hostilities, the way the fighting is going.
02:30 And there are a few principles which must be respected.
02:33 And this is really the obligations regarding international humanitarian law, is the principle
02:38 of distinction, to distinguish between those who fight and those who are not fighting.
02:42 And these are, of course, the civilians in Gaza.
02:45 We are also thinking, of course, about the hostages.
02:48 All these are the most vulnerable today and must be spared by the fighting which has resumed.
02:54 You mentioned the hostages.
02:55 What more do we know about their situation?
02:58 Has the Red Cross been able to have any access to them at all?
03:02 Unfortunately, we haven't been able to have access yet.
03:05 And this has been a demand that the ICRC has made since day one.
03:09 Since October 7th, the ICRC said three things, basically, regarding the hostages.
03:14 That taking hostages is prohibited by international humanitarian law and that all hostages must
03:19 be released.
03:20 So, today, the ICRC has facilitated the release of 109 hostages.
03:25 We want to see more releases happening.
03:28 But in the meantime, ICRC wants access, of course, to the hostages, to be able to check
03:33 on their well-being, give them the necessary medication, and also give news to their families
03:38 who are just worried sick since now two months tomorrow.
03:43 So, speaking today, the UN human rights chief said Palestinians in Gaza are living in, quote,
03:49 "deepening horror," what was described as "apocalyptic circumstances."
03:53 As you say, we've been talking about this situation now for almost two months now.
03:58 What concretely needs to be done to make this stop?
04:02 Concretely, we need at some point a political solution.
04:07 Humanitarians today cannot respond to the vast, immense needs growing day after day
04:12 for the civilian population in Gaza.
04:14 Of course, any assistance further coming in is important.
04:18 Of course, also guaranteeing the fact that health care facilities are protected, which
04:23 is an obligation under international humanitarian law, having safety guarantees for our staff.
04:29 But in the end, there is only a political solution to this escalation of violence that
04:35 both Israel and Gaza have seen since the 7th of October.
04:39 So much of the focus has been on Gaza, and rightly so.
04:42 I just want to ask you about the occupied West Bank.
04:45 What's the situation like there, and has the Red Cross been able to get in there to help
04:49 at all?
04:50 There has been, of course, a ripple effect of the violence in the West Bank.
04:56 The year 2023 has been the worst that the West Bank has seen in terms of violence since
05:03 2005.
05:05 So you can measure to which point now violence has also escalated there, settler violence.
05:12 There's restrictions in movement for the civilian population, which makes, of course, that going
05:16 to work, being able to basically sustain families is getting really more and more difficult.
05:24 The ICRC is present in the West Bank and is helping, of course, in the way we can, and
05:31 also, of course, reminding that there are limits to the use of force in the West Bank
05:36 also.
05:37 Lucille, thank you for speaking to us.
05:39 Lucille Marbeau, spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross.
05:42 Thank you very much.