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HAMILTON, Canada

A group of Canadian humanitarian organizations strongly criticized the new US-Israel-backed aid mechanism in the Gaza Strip, urging Prime Minister Mark Carney to uphold his promises.

"Oxfam strongly condemns attempts to militarize or privatize humanitarian aid in Gaza. These actions undermine international humanitarian law and set a precedent for occupying powers to dictate the terms of aid based on political agendas and military goals," Erin Kiley, director of international programs at Oxfam Canada, said at a news conference in Ottawa.

Saying that Oxfam has aid worth more than $3 million stuck in neighboring countries since the Israeli siege in March, Kiley stressed that the new aid mechanism gives "Israel power over who receives aid, where and from whom. They turn relief into a tool of coercion."

"Aid must not be used as a weapon of war, as it's being done now," she stated.

Kiley said what is being delivered under the new model "is not humanitarian aid, it is displacement through deprivation," and warned that it "blurs the line between humanitarian assistance and military objective, putting civilians and aid workers at grave risk."

Roula Kikhia, a humanitarian advisor from Save the Children, echoed Kiley's remarks and warned that famine in Gaza "is not a future threat, it's a catastrophe unfolding in real-time in front of our eyes."

"Children are being starved, not because food doesn't exist, but because they are being denied access to it. This is not a food shortage, it's a crisis created by political choices," Kikhia said.

She warned that the new mechanism will worsen conditions, and noted that "aid must be delivered based on needs, not filtered through military or political agendas."

"The starvation of children must stop. This is a test of our shared humanity, and failure is not an option," she added/

Rachael Cummings, humanitarian director of Save the Children, attended the news conference virtually from Gaza and described the situation as "absolutely desperate."

"Literally every day I think, 'Okay, it cannot get any worse.' But yet, every day it seems to get worse," she said, adding that children wish to be dead with their loved ones.

"This is a very, very concerning trend where children are so desperate and their needs are so unmet that they wish to no longer be with us," she said.

Cummings noted that the humanitarian response is being obstructed despite the expertise of local and international organizations.

Asked about claims of aid going to Hamas, Cummings said, "The trucks that have been looting or the warehouses that have been raided -- these are desperate people who are starving intentionally."

Human Concern International's chief program officer, Iftikhar Shaikh Ahmad, said the group halted the delivery of 17 fully loaded Canadian-funded aid trucks "not because the need has changed on the ground, but because we are being forced to send our aid through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)." The GHF is a new aid distribution program for the enclave that is backed by the US and Israel.

Describing the GHF as "a form of control" for aid, urged the Carney government to "immediately reject the GHF mechanism, to stand with Canadian NGOs who have worked in Gaza for decades."

"Our demand is that Canada must act. Enough with words, but we need to see action," she said.

In response to Anadolu's question on the Canadian government's silence amounting to complicity in the collective punishment of Palestinians, Ahmad said: "We don't believe that the Canadian government is complicit in what's happening in Gaza."

"We understand that our prime minister, Mr. Carney, already made a statement during his campaign, and also when he joined the office that he will be supporting the Canadian charities to do their work based on humanitarian principles. What we need from him right now is to act upon his promises," she said.

Kikhia also responded and welcomed the Canadian government "taking stronger leadership to protect the children in Gaza."

"We are asking Canada to put more pressure on all conflict parties to adhere to the international law, to protect children and their families, and to really clearly state that there will be no financial or any kind of support to this the current model, the military-controlled model, by the Israeli government," she added.