New Delhi: Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah, the chief executive of Oxfam, one of the world’s foremost humanitarian care organisations, says the “resumption [of the Israel-Hamas war] is worse than before”, adding “we have to break the violence” and agreeing that “a ceasefire is the paramount necessity”.Re-emphasising his point, he said “a ceasefire is absolutely essential”.In a 25-minute interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Sriskandarajah, who spoke from London, said the present devastation of Gaza is “an absolute tragedy”. He said of Oxfam: “We’ve worked on some of the most challenging spots in the world [but] what we’re seeing in Gaza is heart-breaking and unprecedented”.He said this is “not a natural disaster [but] a human-made disaster”.Speaking about the United States and United Kingdom, two of the countries that are the most staunch in their support of Israel and have so far deliberately refused to call for a ceasefire, Sriskandarajah said “[Their] political imperative is trumping what is morally right.”Sriskandarajah lamented the fact that political courage and leadership is lacking internationally, which is why calls for a ceasefire and a greater effort to end the war are not happening. “Where is the political courage?” he asked. “Where is the leadership?”He said “Israel has to do all it can to minimise impact on civilians”. Asked if it was doing that, he said “we worry not enough is being done … the response is not proportionate”.Speaking about the possibility the war could continue for weeks if not months, Sriskandarajah said “it is going to be an even greater tragedy”. He was particularly concerned about the conditions in which people in Gaza are living and the danger of disease and epidemic. He said “the conditions are rife for a public health disaster.”I have only given you a precis of the main points made by Sriskandarajah. There is a lot more in the interview which I will leave you to see, hear and find out for yourself.