All bakeries in Gaza have closed due to a severe lack of fuel and flour caused by Israel\u2019s near month-long blockade of humanitarian aid, according to local authorities. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe occupation has forced all bakeries to shut down entirely, exacerbating the famine crisis that threatens the lives of innocent civilians, particularly children, patients, and the elderly,\u201d the Hamas-controlled Government Media Office in Gaza said Tuesday. <\/p>\n
The closures are likely to accelerate the spread of famine in the strip, the head of the local Bakery Owners\u2019 Association, Abdel Nasser Al-Ajrami told the Palestinian Press Agency Safa. <\/p>\n
The United Nation\u2019s World Food Programme (WFP) said all 25 of its bakeries in the enclave had shut, citing the lack of flour and fuel. <\/p>\n
\u201cHot meals are continuing, but supplies will last two weeks. WFP will distribute its last food parcels in the next two days,\u201d said Abeer Etefa, the WFP\u2019s communications officer for Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe. <\/p>\n
\u201cI went to every bakery. Every time we ask, they say there\u2019s no flour due to the closure of the crossings. The Israelis control the crossings. We don\u2019t know where to go,\u201d Abdul Rahman Fattayeh said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI have 40 family members, and I\u2019ve been searching for bread for them since 8 a.m., going around all the bakeries in Deir al-Balah. None are operating,\u201d al-Kurd said. \u201cThere\u2019s no flour, no firewood, nothing. Not even water. It\u2019s dire,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
The Israeli government shut down the supply of food and other humanitarian aid into Gaza in early March, in a bid to pressure Hamas into releasing more hostages and impose new conditions on the extension of the ceasefire. <\/p>\n
No aid has entered the enclave for more than three weeks, with the head of the UN\u2019s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) saying that this is the longest Gaza has been without any supplies since the war began. <\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the ceasefire, 500\u2013600 trucks arrived daily. Now, nothing,\u201d Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, said last week. <\/p>\n
Describing the latest blockade as the worst humanitarian crisis since the war began, Amjad Al-Shawa, director of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network, warned the closure of bakeries would impact \u201chundreds of thousands of people\u201d who rely on them for food. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe coming days will be very critical on the lives and the health of the Palestinians in Gaza, mainly children, women, and elders,\u201d Al-Shawa said Tuesday, urging the international community to pressure Israel into reopening the crossings. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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