Anders Ladekarl: We see it as a poor excuse to throw us out

The US and Israel are turning aid into a political and military weapon. It could inspire others in the world’s conflicts and cost tens of thousands of lives, says Red Cross Secretary General Anders Ladekarl.

Israel accuses the established aid system of effectively supporting Hamas. And that’s hard to avoid when Hamas is still in power in Gaza, isn’t it?

“We have not experienced that our aid has been taken by Hamas, and there is no evidence that Hamas steals aid. There is certainly a lot of aid being looted, but it is being stolen by desperate people who are dying of hunger. We see this as a poor excuse to throw us out and to establish a system where aid can be used militarily and politically.”