'A Matter of Life and Death'
USAID Administrator Power advocates for increased humanitarian aid in Gaza and regional stability
USAID Administrator Samantha Power traveled to Israel and the West Bank in late February to focus attention on the urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza, advocate for greater protection of civilians and humanitarian workers, and advance the U.S. commitment to long-term stability in the region.
USAID Administrator Samantha Power meets with humanitarian partners working in Gaza to discuss challenges to aid delivery and ways to ensure the safety of civilians and aid workers.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
The Administrator spoke with humanitarian workers about the unprecedented challenges in getting humanitarian assistance into Gaza—and into the hands of Palestinian civilians who are growing increasingly desperate. The conflict in Gaza has had a devastating toll on humanitarian workers, with the highest number of deaths of UN workers of any conflict in history.
Primary TextThe reports of the situation on the ground are among the worst that I have heard about in my career… Getting more humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, and making sure humanitarian workers can safely deliver it, is really a matter of life and death.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
USAID Administrator Samantha Power with USAID’s Palestinian and Israeli peacebuilding partners during a meeting to hear firsthand about the challenges they face following the events of Oct. 7, and opportunities for advancing peace. Power emphasized the importance of these efforts, as they are a critical component to imagining a future two-state solution.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
She then met with Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilding partners working under the Middle East Partnership for Peace Act, who described the difficulty of conducting peacebuilding initiatives during an active conflict.
Power shared her admiration for their determination to expand people-to-people ties and economic collaboration among Israelis and Palestinians, which are vital ingredients for long-term peace.
USAID Administrator Samantha Power at Kerem Shalom crossing – a key corridor for the movement of humanitarian commodities into Gaza – during a visit to gain insight into the logistical challenges experienced by humanitarian actors at the Kerem Shalom crossing and highlight the critical need to increase the operational capacity of all available entry points into Gaza in order to scale humanitarian assistance.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
Power traveled to the Kerem Shalom border crossing, a key corridor for humanitarian assistance deliveries at the intersection of Egypt, Gaza, and Israel. While there, she observed Israel’s inspection and screening processes for humanitarian cargo before entering Gaza, and stressed the need to expedite and substantially increase the flow of humanitarian aid. She also called for the removal of the obstacles preventing or slowing assistance and establishing much stronger protections for humanitarians who are delivering life saving aid.
Primary TextA core principle that must apply in Gaza—and everywhere in the world—is that desperate civilians trying to feed their starving families should not be harmed.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
USAID Administrator Samantha Power tours Kibbutz Be’eri, which experienced the most devastating attack experienced on any Israeli kibbutz on Oct. 7.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
At Kibbutz Be’eri, situated on the Gaza periphery, Power heard from a member of the community who shared his devastating experience on Oct. 7. Power offered her condolences for all those killed, injured, and taken hostage, and shared her appreciation for their ongoing commitment to peace despite the brutality they lived through. She reiterated President Biden’s commitment to ensuring that an atrocity like Oct. 7 can never happen again.
USAID Administrator Samantha Power during meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant, Israel Defense Forces Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi, and Head Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Major General Ghassan Alian, to reiterate U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself while also urging greater attention to protection of civilians and aid workers and the need for increased aid deliveries in Gaza.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
During a meeting with Israeli Government officials, Power emphasized the urgent need for Israel to do more to protect innocent Palestinians and aid workers given the unacceptable level of civilian casualties that Gazans have experienced since the start of the war. Additionally, she advocated for urgent action to sustainably expand humanitarian access.
Primary TextUSAID staff are trying to overcome every logistical obstacle to aid delivery as it arises, coordinating between our humanitarian partners and the Israeli government to try to prevent further attacks on civilian infrastructure and humanitarian aid workers.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
February 29, 2024 - USAID Administrator Samantha Power touring a youth center in Kufr Namah damaged by extremist settler violence. She met with Palestinian community leaders to hear about the impact of extremist settler violence on the community and surrounding farmland.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
On Feb. 29, Power traveled to Ramallah in the West Bank. She visited the Learning Center at the Youth Village in Kufr Neemeh, which was forced to shut down after being severely damaged by extremist settler violence. Power condemned settler violence against Palestinians and reiterated the United States’ opposition to expanded settlements.
Primary TextI heard from Palestinians here in Ramallah, about how extremist settlers have destroyed community sites and forced people from their homes and have also heard again in significant detail about how the access and movement restrictions imposed by Israel have made it impossible for goods to move, and in many instances have ground economic activity to a halt.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
USAID Administrator Samantha Power with Palestinians from Gaza during a conversation where she expressed her condolences over the extreme loss and hardship faced since Oct. 7. Power also emphasized USAID’s commitment to exerting every possible effort to assist the people of Gaza by expanding humanitarian assistance and protecting civilians.
Next, Power met with Palestinians from Gaza to hear directly how the Israel-Hamas war continues to inflict terrible suffering on their lives and families. They shared stories of innocent family and friends who have been killed or injured by Israeli strikes in Gaza and their devastation at seeing their homes, hospitals, and schools destroyed.
Primary TextEvery night, parents in Gaza are deciding where their children should sleep, how they should sleep, whether they will be able to sleep with hunger, but also they're making decisions about how to separate their children so that all of their children are not in one place because of the risk of being killed in the night.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
USAID Administrator Samantha Power met with Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas and discussed the need to surge humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza, and reiterated the United States’ support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and the importance of the PA implementing significant reforms.
USAID/West Bank and Gaza
While in the West Bank, Power met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, where she conveyed the imperative of protecting civilians and aid workers in Gaza and the United States’ efforts to curb extremist settler violence in the West Bank. She also emphasized the importance of the Palestinian Authority undertaking reforms to improve the dire fiscal situation and attract more donor funding.
Primary TextCivilians in the West Bank are also suffering greatly because of this war.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power
Throughout her visit, Power reiterated the United States’ long-standing commitment to supporting the Palestinian people to build thriving communities, promote inclusive development, and advance a two-state solution.
Under the Biden Administration alone, USAID has provided more than $530 million to support the Palestinian people. Since Oct. 7, 2023, the United States has committed more than $180 million in humanitarian assistance funding for Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Primary TextWe know from all over the world that when demands for food, for water, for medicine…when demand so outpaces supply, we see desperation and we see chaos. And that is precisely why throughout my time here in the region, I have stressed again and again the pain and desperation that Gazans are feeling and that it is absolutely essential that we dramatically increase the flow of assistance of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Secondary Text- Administrator Power