The lives of thousands of children in Gaza are hanging by a thread, says Patrick Harvie MSP, who is calling for urgent and unhindered humanitarian access to the devastated region.
Ahead of a Scottish Parliamentary committee meeting with frontline aid agencies, the Scottish Greens Co-Leader has sounded the alarm on the dire consequences of continued delays and blockages.
His plea comes in the wake of stark warnings from the United Nations, which has estimated that up to 14,000 babies could die unless life-saving supplies are allowed into Gaza without delay.
Although Israel has publicly stated that its 11-week aid blockade has ended, the UN and humanitarian workers on the ground report that the few trucks currently allowed in barely scratch the surface of what is needed.
“What we are seeing is collective punishment on a grotesque scale,” said Harvie.
He condemned what he described as the West’s wilful blindness to war crimes committed by Israeli forces and called out both the UK and Scottish governments for their roles in enabling the violence.
In recent months, the Labour UK Government has reportedly approved more arms sales to Israel than during the entire last three years under the Conservatives.
Meanwhile, the SNP-led Scottish Government continues to fund arms manufacturers involved in the production of components for F-35 fighter jets used by Israel in its bombardment of Gaza.
Harvie did not hold back in his criticism.
“Israeli forces have withheld critical humanitarian aid for weeks, and the trickle now permitted is nowhere near enough,” he said.
“Senior members of the Israeli Government have made no secret of their wish to destroy Palestinian life in Gaza.
“Their contempt for international law could not be clearer.”
He argued that the UK has a moral obligation to act and that history would judge harshly those who chose to stay silent.
“The Labour Government has blood on its hands,” he said.
“Instead of taking steps to halt the violence, they have fuelled it.
“It is time to end all trade with Israel and to lead global efforts to get essential aid into Gaza now.”
With every passing hour, the humanitarian catastrophe deepens.
Medical supplies, clean water, and food are running perilously low.
Children, already traumatised by war, are now at risk of malnutrition, disease, and death from entirely preventable causes.
As Harvie and others prepare to listen to the testimonies of aid workers who have seen the suffering first-hand, one message is heartbreakingly clear.
There is no time to wait.
