Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, 12th Oct. UN humanitarian affairs coordination office on Wednesday said that the death toll in Israel from attacks by Palestinian armed groups, and in Gaza due to Israeli bombardments has continued to rise, with mass displacement soaring across the enclave.
OCHA cited Israeli media that over 1,000 Israelis, including foreign nationals, were killed and at least 2,806 people were injured, according to the Ministry of Health.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said 830 Palestinians have been killed and 4,250 injured.
OCHA said over a tenth of the population in Gaza, more than 260,000 people, have been displaced since the start of the current conflict on 7 October and the numbers are rising fast.
Over 175,000 people are sheltering in schools operated by UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, which has some 13,000 staff in the enclave.
UNRWA on Wednesday reported that the death toll among its employees had risen to nine.
The agency has stressed the importance of protecting civilians, including in conflict.
UNRWA is a lifeline for most of the roughly two million Palestine refugees in Gaza, providing essential services such as education and healthcare.
The conflict has forced the closure of its 14 food distribution centres as well as a reduction in operations.
WFP and other UN agencies have been calling for humanitarian corridors and safe and unobstructed passage for their staff.
WFP began distributing fresh bread, canned food and ready-to-eat food to roughly 100,000 people in UNRWA shelters.
The goal is to reach over 800,000 people which will require $17.3 million for immediate response and nearly $45 million over the next six months.
Samer Abdeljaber, Palestine Country Director, said “The situation is devastating”.
“We are on the ground doing everything we can to be sure the people in need – the ones who fled their homes, the ones living in shelters – are getting the food and help they need to survive.”
WFP will be rolling out assistance through electronic vouchers so people can buy food from shops that are still open.
“We are doing everything we can but very soon the food supplies and basic needs in Gaza are going to run out,” he said.
“We need the humanitarian corridor to be able to support the people who are affected and their numbers are rising every day. We need safe and unimpeded access.”
UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, continue engagement with parties to the conflict and key stakeholders.
Mr. Wennesland held “productive meetings” on Wednesday with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and other senior officials, according to a post on his official account on X, formerly Twitter.
He said the priority is to avoid further loss of civilian lives and provide access for humanitarian aid into Gaza.
WFP was rapidly expanding its new emergency operation to provide critical aid to over 800,000 people facing dire circumstances and lacking access to essential supplies despite closed borders and the escalating Israel-Palestine crisis.
It called to establish safe humanitarian corridors to facilitate aid deliveries, WFP issued an urgent appeal for $17.3 million to address the critical situation in the next four weeks.
WFP had delivered ready-to-eat food to 73,000 people in Gaza and started cash-transfers to 164,000 people there and in the West Bank to buy food in local shops.
But, the agency was concerned that supplies were running out.
WFP aimed to distribute food to 300,000 people in host communities and make available cash-based-platforms to humanitarian partners pending the replenishment of food stocks through the opening of humanitarian corridors.
WHO has called for access to health and humanitarian assistance amid the conflict in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory.
WHO said in a statement that “Over 1,000 people have died and many more been injured following horrific acts of violence by Hamas on Saturday in Israel, and days of bombing by Israel in Gaza.”
UN agency has offered assistance to health officials in both Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, who agreed to its request to facilitate the delivery of health and other humanitarian supplies from the agency to Gaza via the Rafah crossing.
The agency reported that hospitals in the Gaza Strip are running on back-up generators, with fuel likely to run out in the coming days.
The supplies pre-positioned by WHO before the escalation have been exhausted,
“The life-saving health response is now dependent on getting new supplies and fuel to health care facilities as fast as possible,” said the agency.
WHO is working to procure medical supplies locally to meet demand while also preparing supplies from its hub in Dubai.
It expressed grave concern over the health and well-being of hostages seized from Israel by Hamas, calling for their safe release.
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