Gaza - New York: Europe and the Arabs - Agencies
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that the Israeli war on Gaza led to the displacement of more than 75% of the population.
It confirmed that about 62% of homes were destroyed, and that vital infrastructure - including United Nations buildings housing displaced families - was attacked.
In the same regard, and quoting the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric stated that night movements will resume tonight after a 48-hour hiatus, following the killing of World Central Kitchen employees in several Israeli raids. According to what was stated in the United Nations news bulletin, a copy of which we received on Friday morning
Dujarric pointed out that the World Health Organization reached two hospitals in Gaza City: Al-Sahaba Hospital and Al-Ahli Hospital.
At Al-Sahaba Hospital, the organization’s delegation conducted an assessment and distributed food and supplies. In Al-Ahli Hospital, the organization distributed medicines and supplies, and transferred a patient and his caregiver to a hospital in southern Gaza.
Regarding the situation in Al-Shifa Hospital, Dujarric said that the WHO team spoke with patients who were able to leave the hospital after the recent Israeli military operation. They described the miserable conditions during the siege, with no food, water, or medicine available. One patient said that doctors there resorted to putting salt and vinegar on people's wounds due to the lack of disinfectants.
Dujarric said that the mission has not yet been able to go to Al-Shifa Hospital.
Despicable humanitarian conditions
The situation in Gaza is worsening after about six months of war. In a post on social media before heading to Gaza on Thursday, Jamie McGoldrick, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, stressed that there is no safe place in the Strip.
The UN coordinator added that the occupied Palestinian territory "has become one of the most dangerous and difficult places to work in the world. It cannot continue like this."
UN Women reports that Gazans have almost no access to water, food and health care while facing almost constant bombardment. The UN agency said: “Every day that the war continues in Gaza, at the current rate, an average of 63 women are killed.” She highlighted the suffering faced by Palestinians, including Mayada Tarazi, who works with the Young Women's Christian Association in Palestine, a non-governmental organization.
“The hope is that there will be a ceasefire now,” Ms. Tarazi said. “We continue to call for a ceasefire, but we need real action. We need support from governments to push for a ceasefire because the situation cannot continue like this.”
Israel's attacks in the West Bank
As for the occupied West Bank, UN agencies and the media report continued attacks against Palestinians, their property and lands. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported demolitions on Thursday in Umm al-Rihan.
From 7 October to 1 April, 428 Palestinians - including 110 children - were killed by Israeli forces across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. 131 of these have been killed since the beginning of this year.
In addition, nine were killed by Israeli settlers and three by Israeli forces or settlers, according to the latest OCHA update. The UN office stated that during the same period, about 4,760 Palestinians, including at least 739 children, were injured, the majority of them at the hands of Israeli forces.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club, 11 Palestinians have died in Israeli prisons since October 7, mainly due to medical neglect or ill-treatment, OCHA reported.
Vote on sanctions against Israel
On the other hand, the United Nations Human Rights Council is scheduled to vote on draft resolutions related to the war in Gaza on the last day of its current session in Geneva.
One project calls for an arms embargo on Israel, which was introduced in the wake of an Israeli drone missile attack on a World Central Kitchen aid convoy that killed seven of the organization's employees earlier this week in Gaza. The convoy was transporting emergency food aid that came by sea from Cyprus to stave off a looming famine in northern Gaza.
Under the provisions of the draft resolution, the Council calls on all states to “cease the sale, transfer and transfer of arms, ammunition and other military equipment to Israel, the occupying power, in order to prevent further violations of international humanitarian law and human rights violations.”