A Palestinian child holding an empty pot waits near the ruins to receive food distributed by volunteers to displaced families in southern Gaza, Rafah, on December 22, 2023. Photo: Anadolu Agency.
JAKARTA, BERITALINGKUNGAN.COM – The global environmental organization Greenpeace has issued a strong statement on the ongoing humanitarian tragedy in Gaza, calling it a “humanitarian catastrophe compounded by ethnic cleansing and environmental destruction.”
In its statement, Greenpeace denounced Israel’s military actions, particularly the operation known as “Gideon’s Chariot,” which has caused widespread devastation — not only to Palestinian civilians but also to critical infrastructure, water resources, and natural ecosystems that sustain over two million people in Gaza.
“This is not merely a conflict. It is a global moral failure. It is about impunity, and how the world turns a blind eye to crimes committed in plain sight,” stated Greenpeace in its official release received by Beritalingkungan.com (27/05/2025).
People and the Environment Pay the Price
Palestinian children sort through waste at a landfill in the Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza Strip, Thursday (June 20, 2024). The conflict in Gaza has decimated sanitation systems, displaced much of the population, and forced families to live in makeshift tents. Conditions are worsened by contaminated water and mounting waste. (Photo: AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana).
Greenpeace warns that the combination of relentless military attacks, total blockade, and suspension of humanitarian aid has created a massive hunger crisis. While global attention is fixed on the rising toll of bullets and bombs, thousands of innocent lives are also being lost due to lack of food and medicine.
“Mass starvation is no accident. It is a weapon of war. And if the world allows it to continue, then silence becomes complicity,” said Greenpeace.
Beyond human loss, the conflict is also inflicting severe environmental damage in Gaza — from polluted drinking water and destroyed farmland to the collapse of sanitation infrastructure. These ecological wounds will burden future generations of Palestinians long after the bombs stop falling.
Greenpeace Calls for Ceasefire and Real Global Action
Greenpeace is urging the international community to take immediate and concrete action to address the crisis:
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An immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire.
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The release of all hostages by Hamas and all Palestinians illegally detained by Israel.
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Unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid by the UN and other humanitarian organizations.
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A comprehensive arms embargo on all parties involved in war crimes.
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An end to the illegal occupation of Palestinian lands in accordance with international law.
Greenpeace stresses that it does not side with violence, but stands firmly for justice, human rights, and lasting peace — including protection for the environment, which has become a silent casualty of war.
Not Just Politics — This Is About Humanity and the Future
Palestinians walk past destroyed homes in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip in February. U.N. experts estimate, based on satellite data, that the war has generated some 42,000 million tons of debris, a volume 14 times greater than all conflicts in the past 16 years. Photo: Mahmoud Issa/Reuters
“What is happening in Gaza is not just armed conflict. It is the destruction of life and future — for people and for nature. If the international community remains silent, it becomes part of the tragedy,” Greenpeace concluded.
Greenpeace supports a vision of peace where Israel and Palestine coexist, within internationally recognized borders, with mutual respect for the environment and for human life.
(Marwan Aziz)