For nearly two months, Israel has deliberately and openly prevented the entry of any humanitarian aid including food, water, fuel, and medical equipment into the Gaza Strip. For more than a year, four Israeli human rights organizations, Gisha, Physicians for Human Rights, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and HaMoked: Center for the Defense of the Individual have led a principled legal petition in the High Court, demanding that Israel meet its legal obligations under Israeli and international law to ensure unfettered and immediate aid access to the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.

While the petition was still under deliberation, Israel announced the closure of all crossings into Gaza imposing a complete blockade since March 2. The state did not even claim that this extreme measure was related to military needs but admitted that it was a “political security” decision.

On March 27, the High Court rejected the petition, displaying disregard for the implications of this latest state policy on the fragile humanitarian situation in Gaza. Nearly everything is scarce in the Strip: since March 18, Israel has bombarded continuously via land, air, and sea, causing thousands of deaths and injuries; issued displacement orders that forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee; and as mentioned above, blocked all entry of goods and equipment to the strip for nearly two months.

Last week, the human rights organizations sent an urgent request demanding the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Defense Minister Israel Katz, open Gaza’s crossings immediately and enable consistent and unfettered aid supply and access.