Reports of attacks taking place near an aid centre in Deir Al-Balah came from the UN humanitarian agency, OCHAsaid UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric, who provided updates on the situation in the besieged enclave.
“The (relief) operations continue,” he told reporters at UN headquarters. “But when there is a strike 100 meters away from where you are working, it just adds to the already overwhelming stress level for our colleagues, not to mention the impact it has on civilians. who are routinely killed in these attacks.”
Increase in displaced people from northern Gaza
Nine months into the conflict, Gazans continued to face numerous evacuation orders from the Israeli military. The conflict was fueled by Hamas-led terror attacks on multiple Israeli locations, killing some 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages.
Families also joined the exodus from Gaza City to Deir Al-Balah. More than 1,000 people crossed the border in the past week, mainly on donkey carts, motorbikes or cars, the UN spokesman said.
“Many of those people have told us they have been displaced dozens of times,” Mr Dujarric added.
Therefore, UN teams have been deployed along the route to provide water, hot meals, food and health care to the refugees from Gaza City, he noted.
Chronic fuel shortages
As for the fuel needed for humanitarian aid, he said there were still shortages.
“The lack of fuel continues to hamper the work of basic service providers, including hospitals, ambulances, bakeries and emergency services,” he said. “Over the past two weeks, we have been able to collect an average of more than 80,000 liters of fuel per day.”
While that is an improvement on the previous daily average of 40,000 litres, Mr Dujarric said it falls short of the 400,000 liters needed every day.
He said Israeli authorities continue to not allow fuel to be allocated to key local humanitarian workers, preventing them from moving supplies inside Gaza.
The UN on Monday seized 10 trucks and trailers delivering aid, Dujarric said.
Clinic offers glimmer of hope
Despite enormous challenges, including shortages of medical supplies and medicines and the destruction of many clinics as a result of the war, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWAcontinues to provide essential health services and works tirelessly to meet the growing health needs of the displaced.
For UN News, Ziad Taleb visited the agency’s clinic in Deir Al-Balah and met some of the displaced people there, telling them about the immense suffering they are going through.
Amid the spread of infectious diseases and difficult living conditions, the UNRWA clinic remains a lifeline for many, providing free treatment and much-needed medical support.
UN News
Patients wait at a UNRWA clinic in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza.
Situation ‘deteriorating dramatically’
According to Inas Hamdan, UNRWA’s director of information, displaced people in the Gaza Strip are living in extremely difficult conditions.
“Things are getting worse dramatically with each passing day because this war has been going on for more than nine months,” she said. “The health situation is also very tragic because of the spread of diseases among the displaced people, especially children.”
These include skin diseases and viral hepatitis, as well as gastrointestinal diseases and diarrhea.
“There are a number of factors that have led to this, the first of which is the lack of medical supplies and medicines needed to treat such casesshe explained. “The most important thing is the living conditions that lack the most basic necessities of life in tents or shelters. Most of these displaced people are living in tents or shelters.”
Closed border crossings make it increasingly difficult to deliver relief supplies, such as sufficient water and medical and hygiene supplies.
Free services
The majority of Gaza’s population, 2.3 million, is heavily dependent on UNRWA clinics. Ashraf Abu Maghsib, an IDP from eastern Deir Al-Balah, explained that he comes to UNRWA clinics because they provide medicines free of charge, unlike pharmacies and other clinics that sell them at high prices.
Hiba Hassanein, who was displaced from Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, said: “We chose the agency’s clinic because it offers free treatment to all citizens. We suffer from skin diseases, hepatitis and poor hygiene.”
Others echoed those concerns. Enas Othman, an IDP from Jabalia in northern Gaza, said some of the most dangerous diseases are skin-related, pointing to the widespread presence of mosquitoes and the lack of drinking water among IDPs. The salty water does indeed cause many diseases, she added.
“We currently live in Al Mawasi area in Khan Younis, a place full of insects that harm people and cause the spread of diseases,” she said.
Lifeline for displaced persons
More than 700 UNRWA health workers are working in various health posts between the displaced people and the main clinics, where they have been providing continuous health care to the displaced people for more than 10 months.
However, many UNRWA clinics in different parts of the Gaza Strip have been closed after being destroyed by the war.
Yet UNRWA clinics remain a lifeline for displaced people in Gaza, amid a shortage of medical care due to the ongoing war.
