Food rotting and medicine expiring at Gaza border while civilians die, laments Polish representative
Poland told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Thursday that Israel is legally obligated to lift any blockade preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling it "unacceptable" that people are dying while food, medicine, and vital medical supplies are held at the border.
"It is unimaginable that these basic rules are still violated," said Patrycja Grzebyk, representing Poland. "The situation where people die because at the border, food is rotting, medicine is expiring, and vital medical equipment has stopped cannot be accepted ... cannot be understood."
Grzebyk also stressed that hospitals must be respected as sanctuaries in wartime, humanitarian workers and supplies must be protected, and all attacks on them must be investigated.
Poland also emphasized that any blockade that delays or obstructs humanitarian assistance is incompatible with international humanitarian law.
"Any arbitrary blockade can be understood as an obstruction that is unreasonable, unjust, lacking in predictability, or otherwise inappropriate," Lukasz Kulaga, on behalf of Poland, said.
Artur Harazim, also representing Poland, reaffirmed Warsaw's longstanding position supporting a two-state solution as the only path to guarantee Palestinian self-determination and Israel's security.
While recognizing Israel's right to self-defense, he said this must be exercised strictly within the bounds of international law, including the Geneva Conventions.
Poland called on the court to uphold these fundamental legal principles to ensure that humanitarian relief reaches civilians without delay and that the suffering in Gaza does not continue unchecked.
Since March 2, Israel has closed Gaza's crossings, blocking essential supplies from entering the enclave despite multiple reports of famine in the war-devastated territory.
The Israeli army renewed its assault on Gaza on March 18, shattering a Jan. 19 ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
More than 52,400 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.
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