Starvation of civilians is undoubtedly a war crime

While the brutal warfare in Syria and the multiple parties' efforts to work with Tehran to seek a political settlement of the Iran nuclear issue catch wide attention, the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza should never be ignored.

Unfortunately, its long duration seems to be causing compassion fatigue among the international community. But it should not be forgotten that the Palestinian question is one of the root causes of the ongoing Middle East crisis.

Between July 8 and 15, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than 11,600 people were newly displaced in Gaza, bringing the overall displacement since the breakdown of the ceasefire on March 18 to more than 737,000 people, about 35 percent of Gaza's population. Since the outbreak of the conflict in Gaza 21 months ago, nearly everyone has been displaced, in many cases multiple times.