UN allocates $9M to keep life-saving services running in Gaza

HAMILTON, Canada

The UN on Monday announced that the UN relief chief Tom Fletcher has allocated $9 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund to maintain fuel supplies crucial for life-saving services in the Gaza Strip.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported in a statement that while Israeli air strikes have reduced in recent days, shelling and gunfire "continued over the weekend, with 21 people reportedly killed and 96 injured yesterday," citing the Gaza Health Ministry.

"Humanitarian access and movement across Gaza remain challenging," said OCHA, noting that on Sunday, eight aid missions coordinated with Israeli authorities were facilitated, including the installation of a solar panel in Deir al-Balah and the collection of fuel, food, and health supplies from the Karem Shalom crossing. However, "six other missions were denied, and five had to be cancelled by the organizers."

Despite the challenges, OCHA reported that the UN's humanitarian partners distributed 885,000 meals through 167 kitchens across Gaza on Saturday.

The UN agency further noted that "only 12 kitchens are operating in the north" and stressed the need for "unimpeded and sustained access to all parts of Gaza so that aid can reach people wherever they are."

"Meanwhile, aid workers on the ground in Gaza are doing everything possible to serve large numbers of people coming from the north to the south," said OCHA, adding that overcrowded displacement sites are forcing families to stay in harsh conditions.

It further reported that some families have set up 70 tents at garbage dumping sites, while others attempt to return north despite Gaza City being declared a "dangerous combat zone."

OCHA reaffirmed that "despite immense challenges, the UN and its humanitarian partners continue to do whatever they can to meet people's urgent needs across the Strip."

Since October 2023, Israeli bombardments have killed more than 67,000 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it uninhabitable, with the blockade also pushing Gaza to famine.