New York: The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) issued a warning, stating that the Israeli orders forcing Gaza City residents to relocate will only worsen the Palestinian people’s humanitarian suffering and that it is imperative to provide for these civilians’ basic needs and safety whether they are relocated or stay put.
The UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric called on all parties to the conflict taking part in the war in the Gaza Strip to respect international humanitarian law during the daily press briefing from UN headquarters in New York City. He described the current level of fighting and destruction in the Strip as “shocking,” pertaining to reaching an agreement between the warring parties on a humanitarian ceasefire.
According to Dujarric, during the Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Muhannad Hadi’s third visit to the Gaza Strip last Tuesday, the UN Coordinator “briefed the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres
, on the results of that visit, which summarized the repercussions of the war there, which is collapse of safety and public order inside and outside the Strip’s borders.
Dujarric said, “Hadi saw firsthand the consequences of the breakdown in public order and safety during his entry and exit from Gaza through the Karem Abu Salem border crossing,” he observed crowds waiting with sticks for relief trucks to pull up at the Gaza border, as all of those vehicles had sustained significant damage from the attacks. He also observed aid packs. Outside the crossing, along the road, are patches of flour provided by the World Food Program and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).”
“The city of Khan Yunis has turned into a city of rubble as a result of the damage to residential buildings as a result of the battles that took place there,” Dujarric continued, citing the UN coordinator’s statement.
“The UN Coordinator, Hadi, briefed on the horrific conditions of the displaced in several
United Nations sites, and during his meetings with groups of women suffering from life difficulties due to the lack of basic necessities like food, drink, and medicine, in addition to the severe overcrowding conditions in the displacement sites and how this leads to social tensions,” Dujarric continued.
“The UN coordinator visited the International Medical Corps field hospital in the Deir al-Balah area, accompanied by the Regional Director of the World Health Organization, Hanan Balkhi,” Dujarric said, adding that, “The hospital’s extremely challenging operational conditions, including its inability to obtain basic medical supplies.”
Dujarric added that the UN coordinator is scheduled to visit New York next week, when he is expected to brief the UN Security Council and conduct a news conference at the UN headquarters.
Source: Jordan News Agency
