Australia pledges an additional $11 million in Gaza aid

Australia is providing an extra $11 million in lifesaving humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza undergoing Israeli bombardment following the collapse of a ceasefire.

The funding will address urgent needs, including health care, food and water supplies severely impacted after Israel’s renewed strikes on the blockaded strip where more than two million people are trapped.

The death toll has risen to more than 50,000, including at least 15,000 children, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Israel’s ongoing retaliatory aerial and ground assault on the territory was prompted after Hamas militants killed 1200 people and captured more than 250 hostages in a cross-border attack on October 7, 2023.

“Australia is engaging diplomatically as part of the international call for all parties to return to the ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Thursday.

“We continue to press for the protection of civilians, the release of hostages and unimpeded and sustained humanitarian aid.”

Australia has committed almost $125 million in aid since October 2023 to support civilians impacted by the Middle East conflict.

Mining magnate and philanthropist Andrew Forrest and Nicola Forrest, who founded the Minderoo Foundation, called for crucially needed aid to get through the territory and the protection of humanitarian workers.

“Nowhere is safe in Gaza – recent strikes reportedly hit makeshift shelters housing sleeping children and families, and United Nations premises have come under deadly attack,” they said in a statement.

“Halting the flow of humanitarian aid is a grave violation of international humanitarian law.

“We profess our heartache and utter dismay at the pain and suffering currently being endured by the people of Gaza – nearly half of whom are children – since the ceasefire was broken.”

A further $15 million is also being diverted to humanitarian crises in Myanmar and Afghanistan, particularly toward vulnerable women.

Some one million Rohingya refugees, an ethnic Muslim minority targeted by the Myanmar military junta and militias who have fled across the border to Bangladesh, will receive $7 million in food assistance.

This will be augmented by $3 million more for those displaced at the Thai-Myanmar border.

In restive Afghanistan, retaken by the hardline Taliban almost four years ago, $5 million will be provided to enable United Nations partners to deliver services for women and girls.

These include addressing critical sexual and reproductive health needs, gender-based violence and displacement.

“Australia is steadfast in its support for Afghan women and girls, who have shown incredible courage in the face of the Taliban’s systematic human rights violations and abuses,” Senator Wong noted.

“Helping others in crisis reflects Australian values but also supports our interests in a peaceful, stable world.

“Australia’s contribution will provide life-saving assistance to people enduring immense suffering.”

By: Farid Farid/AAP