Israel has ordered additional evacuations in northern Gaza, intensifying a humanitarian crisis as the United Nations reports escalating challenges in delivering aid. The latest directive urges civilians in the Al-Bureij area of Deir al Balah governorate to move west, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Israeli authorities have continued to deny UN attempts to coordinate the safe movement of humanitarian workers. On Friday, OCHA reported that six out of ten coordination attempts were outright rejected. “Our plan to deliver supplies to the besieged areas of North Gaza governorate was among those rejected,” the office stated. Of the four remaining attempts, only two proceeded fully, while the others encountered significant impediments.
Displaced multiple times, many Gazans are fleeing amid intense bombardment with minimal belongings into areas lacking basic necessities. “Humanitarian organizations are doing everything they possibly can to support people wherever they are,” OCHA emphasized.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 55 patients and 72 companions were evacuated from Gaza on Tuesday for medical treatment in the United Arab Emirates. Since October 2023, over 5,300 patients have been evacuated abroad, yet more than 12,000 critically ill patients, including thousands of children, await evacuation. “It would take 5-10 years to evacuate all these critically ill patients,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus shared on social media.
Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), affirmed the agency’s commitment to continue operations despite an Israeli bill aiming to ban UNRWA from operating in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, set to take effect within weeks. “UNRWA’s teams are committed to staying and delivering,” Lazzarini declared.
Since the conflict escalated in October 2023, UNRWA has provided 6.7 million medical consultations in Gaza, averaging over 1,600 per day. Approximately 730,000 people have received mental health and psychosocial support, and 560,000 children under ten have been vaccinated against polio. Nearly 2 million people have received food assistance, hundreds of thousands have found shelter in UNRWA facilities, and 18,000 children have been engaged in learning activities.
“We stress once again that UNRWA is the backbone of the humanitarian response and is irreplaceable,” OCHA stated. “A collapse of its operations would lead to immense suffering for people already enduring extreme hardship.”
When questioned about the potential cessation of UNRWA’s operations, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres, stated, “Under international law, if UNRWA is not able to go about its mandated tasks, Israel, as the occupying power, would have to take on those responsibilities.”
The deepening crisis underscores the urgent need for safe passage of humanitarian aid and the protection of civilians amidst ongoing hostilities.
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Israel orders more evacuations in Gaza as humanitarian crisis deepens
cgtn.com
