GAZA, Jun 02 (News On Japan) - A Japanese woman working with Doctors Without Borders has delivered a harrowing account from Gaza, where severe food shortages and relentless Israeli airstrikes have pushed local hospitals and residents to the brink of collapse.
Amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian enclave, distribution of humanitarian aid—including food—was halted for nearly three months by Israeli authorities, according to the Palestinian ambassador at a United Nations meeting. Although a new food distribution effort has since begun, supported by the American-led Gaza Relief Foundation, criticism has emerged over the group’s operations being conducted outside UN frameworks and under Israeli coordination. During one such distribution, Israeli gunfire killed at least three people and injured 46 others.
The head of the UN agency overseeing aid to Palestine warned that aid drop-off points were being selected in ways that endangered civilians. Crowds were seen moving en masse toward the designated delivery town of Muwasi, further aggravating fears of displacement. The backdrop to this, observers suggest, may include political ambitions of development involving resident relocation—a policy previously promoted by the Trump administration.
Working under such extreme conditions is Nao Muramoto, who arrived in Gaza last month as a logistician for Doctors Without Borders. Although not a physician herself, she has been responsible for securing medical supplies and setting up field hospitals in bombed-out areas. "There are drone sounds constantly, and we hear airstrikes every day, even here in our office," she said.
Muramoto described scenes of children scavenging through garbage for scraps of food, highlighting the acute lack of nutrition in the territory. Compared to her last deployment in Gaza, the current shortage of supplies is markedly worse. Even Nasser Hospital—one of the facilities her team supports—was hit by an airstrike, destroying their last remaining stock of medical materials.
"We’ve run out of painkillers," she said. "Changing burn dressings has to be done without any anesthesia. You walk the halls and hear the screams of children—it’s heartbreaking."
Muramoto emphasized that food itself is being used as a weapon of war. "This is a blatant disregard for humanity," she said, calling urgently for a comprehensive ceasefire. "People don’t know what they’ll eat tomorrow, or where the next bomb will fall today."
The program concluded with a sharp commentary on international responsibility. While some global leaders have only recently begun criticizing Israeli actions, critics argue that meaningful change will only come if those same nations take action beyond words—such as ending military support and defending freedom of speech for those protesting the ongoing violence.
Source: TBS
