The Gaza Strip is in its worst humanitarian crisis since 1967, international aid groups said.
A report issued by eight aid and human rights organizations Thursday described conditions for Gaza’s 1.5 million Palestinians as being the worst since Israel conquered the territory in the Six-Day War.
Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 but imposed a blockade last year to pressure the ruling Hamas Islamists into stopping cross-border rocket salvoes.
The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem issued a statement placing the blame for Gaza’s privations on Hamas and advising the report’s authors to redirect their criticism accordingly.
Experts also noted that in Gaza, as in the West Bank, living standards for Palestinians improved dramatically under Israeli rule. These conditions peaked in 1992, before the establishment of a Palestinian Authority riddled with corruption and mismanagement.
