Humanitarians underscore need for urgent and sustained support in Gaza

This article is published in association with United Nations.

As the UN and partners continue to deliver life-saving assistance across the Gaza Strip, the scale of needs remains overwhelming, requiring urgent and sustained support, UN aid coordination office OCHA said on Monday. 

OCHA cited Gaza’s Ministry of Health which stressed that oxygen supplies are critically needed to keep emergency, surgical and intensive care services running at hospitals, including Al Shifa and Al Rantisi hospitals in Gaza City. 

“Health partners are engaging with the authorities to bring in generators, spare parts and equipment required to produce oxygen locally in Gaza,” the agency said. 

Shelter and education

Over the weekend, humanitarian partners working in the shelter sector distributed tarpaulins to more than 11,000 families in the north. 

In Khan Younis, some 450 families are receiving sealing-off kits to create short-term shelters, kitchen sets and hygiene kits at the displacement site of Al Mawasi.  

Educational activities also continue to expand, and more than 250,000 children have enrolled in distance learning programmes run by the UN Palestine refugee agency, UNRWA.

Some 95 per cent of school buildings across Gaza were damaged over the past 15 months of hostilities, according to UN partners working in the education sector. Students are currently attending classes in makeshift tents and open spaces, amid winter temperatures.  

West Bank hostilities

OCHA also reported on the situation in the West Bank, where casualties continue to be reported due to the ongoing operations by Israeli forces in Tulkarm and Jenin.          

“These are the most extensive Israeli operations in the West Bank in two decades, causing high casualties and significant displacement, especially in refugee camps,” the agency noted.

Critical infrastructure has also been severely damaged, driving humanitarian needs even higher.

OCHA once again warned that the use of lethal, war-like tactics during these operations raises concerns over the use of force that exceeds law enforcement standards. 

Settler attacks against Palestinians and their properties also continue to be reported across the West Bank. Israeli settlers attacked residents in several villages in Nablus governorate over the weekend – in one instance, setting a house on fire. 

Humanitarians are mobilizing resources to support affected communities, OCHA said.

Averting UNRWA collapse

The head of UNRWA warned on Monday that if the agency collapses it will create a vacuum in the occupied Palestinian territory and send shockwaves through neighbouring countries.

Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini was speaking in Cairo at the Fourth Meeting of the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.

He said Israeli legislation targeting UNRWA’s operations is now being implemented.

Last October, Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, adopted two bills banning UNRWA from working in Israeli territory and enforcing a no-contact policy between national authorities and agency representatives. The laws took effect in January.

Threat to peace and stability 

Mr. Lazzarini warned against allowing UNRWA to “implode” due to the Knesset legislation and the suspension of funding by key donors. 

“An environment in which children are deprived of education, and people lack access to basic services, is fertile ground for exploitation and extremism” he said.  “This is a threat to peace and stability in the region and beyond.”

He said that alternatively, UNRWA could progressively conclude its mandate within the framework of a political process like that championed by the Global Alliance.

“The agency would gradually transition its public-like services to empowered and prepared Palestinian institutions. This is the future for which we are preparing,” he said.