IDF Blows up Food Earmarked for Palestinians

Just about two weeks ago, it was reported that "more than a fifth of Palestinian children in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are suffering from acute malnutrition." UNRWA elaborated in a press release that, "four out of five Palestinian children have inadequate iron and zinc intake, deficiencies that cause anemia and weaken the immune system. Over half the children in Gaza and the West Bank have inadequate caloric and vitamin A intake. Half of Palestinian children have inadequate folate intake."

So, what to make of the news that "Israeli soldiers blew up a warehouse full of food for needy Palestinians" over the weekend? The World Food Programme contends that the IDF (purposefully?) destroyed over US$271,000 worth of food, "which was housed on the ground floor of a three-storey building and clearly marked as WFP property, mainly comprised donations from the European Commission and Sweden and was to be distributed by the Ministry of Social Affairs to some 41,300 destitute people affected by the ongoing humanitarian crises in the Gaza Strip."

A tragic mistake, the IDF claims. Or, perhaps, part of Sharon's renewed effort to enact "vengeance" and further collective punishment for the recent spate of terrorist attacks?