Gaza: Europe and the Arabs
Continuing heavy fighting in northern Gaza forced an estimated 84,000 people to flee eastern Gaza City within days, and also cut off access to a major aid distribution centre, humanitarian workers said.
The mass exodus from the Shujaiya area in Gaza City comes after days of intense bombardment launched by the Israeli army, as its tanks were seen about 100 meters east of Salah al-Din Road, the main axis linking north and south. According to what was stated in the United Nations news bulletin, a copy of which we received on Tuesday morning
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) quoted residents of the area as saying, "Famine is looming on the horizon, and how people eat tree leaves or only get flour to survive."
Pregnant women and people with disabilities
In text messages, Louise Waterdridge, spokeswoman for UNRWA, described the devastation in the affected areas - which extend over about seven square kilometers - as “horrific,” noting that most people lost their homes - either completely or partially - and were forced to move. Fleeing with little luggage to carry. She noted that many people lost members of their families.
Louise Waterdridge added: “Pregnant women and people with disabilities are among the most vulnerable groups because they cannot move easily during forced displacement, and there is also great concern for the conditions of thousands of unaccompanied and separated children.”
The violence also prevented the agency from reaching its distribution center in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood in Gaza City, “due to its proximity to the front line.”
Of the approximately 84,000 people currently displaced, approximately 10,600 people have taken refuge in 27 sites, including UNRWA schools, where temporary health points are available, but are under growing pressure to cope with the increasing numbers of people in need. While others are staying in government schools, buildings and open areas, according to Ms. Louise Waterridge, UNRWA spokeswoman.
 The needs are still huge
Waterdridge said that UNRWA has already distributed water, food parcels and flour with the aim of helping those who have been displaced due to the recent escalation, and the distribution of diapers, mattresses and tarpaulins is also scheduled for Monday.
It also reported receiving some fuel to meet the agency's needs on Sunday through the fence separating Gaza from Israel. A limited amount of diesel fuel also entered the sector to operate hospital generators and water desalination plants. But humanitarian workers have repeatedly warned that the needs remain huge.
According to the latest update from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), access restrictions, insecurity and ongoing hostilities continue to “significantly impede” the delivery of essential humanitarian aid and services across Gaza.
This includes, according to OCHA, “essential food and nutrition assistance, medical care, shelter support, and water, sanitation and hygiene services for hundreds of thousands of people in need.” Israeli authorities have facilitated less than half of the more than 100 planned humanitarian aid missions coordinated to reach northern Gaza this month. As for the rest of the humanitarian missions, they were either hindered, prevented from reaching it, or canceled for logistical, operational, or security reasons.
Humanitarian partners on the ground also reported that a military operation in the Al-Mawasi area caused dozens of casualties, who were transferred to a nearby field hospital. It also resulted in the displacement of at least 5,000 people.
Destruction in the south
Amid the ongoing Israeli military operation in Rafah, which began in early May, an UNRWA spokeswoman said that the scenes of devastation in southern Gaza "now resemble the horrific scenes in the north and Gaza City." She noted that UNRWA, as the largest UN relief agency in Gaza, continued to provide the greatest possible amount of humanitarian services and supplies such as food, health care, and even educational activities for children.
She continued, saying: “But it has become almost impossible for the United Nations to provide any kind of response due to the Israeli blockade imposed on Gaza. There are shortages of fuel and supplies as well as insecurity; all of this represents a complete hardship for our staff, who themselves have been struggling to survive.” alive throughout this war.