UNITED NATIONS  -  The head of the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, has confirmed that a large convoy of humanitarian aid was looted inside besieged Gaza at the weekend, amid a near-total breakdown in law and order and harassment of the agency’s staff by Israeli soldiers.

“More than 100 trucks have been looted, primarily (carrying goods for) UNRWA and the WFP, basically, 80-90 per cent of the convoy on that day,” Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, said on Monday night.

“What does it show? We [began] warning a long time ago about the total breakdown of civil order; until four or five months ago, we still had local capacity, people who were escorting the convoy. This has completely gone.”

According to UNRWA, the incident happened on Saturday and involved a 109-truck convoy. “The vast majority of the trucks, 97 in total, were lost and drivers were forced at gunpoint to unload aid,” it said in an online post on X.

“The Israeli authorities continue to disregard their legal obligations under international law to ensure the population’s basic needs are met and to facilitate the safe delivery of aid,” the UN agency insisted.

“Such responsibilities continue when trucks enter the Gaza Strip, until people are reached with essential assistance.”

In addition to ongoing deadly Israeli bombardment – including of a residential building in northern Beit Lahia at the weekend which left dozens dead, prompting strong condemnation – UNRWA said that critical shortages of flour had forced all eight UN-supported bakeries in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis to operate “at diminished capacity for weeks. Many have been forced to shut down entirely.

“Without immediate intervention, severe food shortages are set to worsen, further endangering the lives of over two million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive.”