Lazzarini called for an immediate end to the months-long blockade that has crippled humanitarian access to the besieged enclave.

His remarks come amid conflicting reports of Israeli forces opening fire on civilians near a recently established, privatised aid distribution point in southern Gaza, operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a body supported by both Israel and the United States but operating independently of established UN aid channels.

According to local health authorities and international medical workers on the ground, at least 31 civilians were killed and more than 150 others injured during the chaos at the Rafah distribution site, where desperate residents had gathered in the hope of receiving food and supplies.

Taking to social media, Lazzarini condemned the conditions under which aid is being delivered, calling the current system “a death trap.”

“A distribution point by the Israeli-American plan was put far south in Rafah,” he said, describing the effort as a “humiliating system” that forces thousands of desperate people to trek across bombed-out terrain in search of assistance.

He maintained that only the UN, including UNRWA, has the capacity and infrastructure to deliver aid at the necessary scale and in a manner that ensures the safety and dignity of recipients.

“The only way to prevent mass starvation is to lift the blockade,” Lazzarini stated plainly, warning of the dire consequences if the situation persists.

--UN/ChannelAfrica--