United Nations aid agencies have warned that dwindling food and fuel stocks could force aid operations in Gaza to grind to a halt within days as vital crossings remain shut, forcing hospitals to close down and leading to more malnutrition, Reuters reports.

Humanitarian workers have sounded the alarm this week over the closure of the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings for aid and people as part of Israel’s military operation in Rafah, where around 1 million uprooted people have been sheltering.

“For five days, no fuel and virtually no humanitarian aid entered the Gaza Strip, and we are scraping the bottom of the barrel,” said the Unicef Senior Emergency Coordinator in the Gaza Strip, Hamish Young.

“This is already a huge issue for the population and for all humanitarian actors but in a matter of days, if not corrected, the lack of fuel could grind humanitarian operations to a halt,” he told a virtual briefing.

More than 100,000 people have fled Rafah in the last five days, he added.

Opinion

Editorial

New regional order
Updated 11 May, 2026

New regional order

The fact is that the US has only one true security commitment in the Middle East — Israel.
A better start
11 May, 2026

A better start

THE first 1,000 days of a child’s life often shape decades to come. In Pakistan, where chronic malnutrition has...
Widening gap
11 May, 2026

Widening gap

PAKISTAN’S monthly trade deficit ballooned to $4.07bn last month, its highest level since June 2022, further...
Momentary relief
Updated 10 May, 2026

Momentary relief

THE IMF’s approval of the latest review of Pakistan’s ongoing Fund programme comes at a moment of growing global...
India’s global shame
10 May, 2026

India’s global shame

INDIA’s rabid streak is at an all-time high. Prejudice is now an organised movement to erase religious freedoms ...
Aurat March restrictions
Updated 10 May, 2026

Aurat March restrictions

The message could not have been clearer: women may gather, but only if they remain politically harmless.