Gaza - New York: Europe and the Arabs

The United Nations organizations announced that one hundred thousand Palestinian children returned to school after opening 165 public schools throughout Gaza. This is the first time that students have returned to in-person learning in 16 months, according to the United Nations daily news bulletin.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that the polio vaccination campaign that began a few days ago ended on Wednesday, reaching more than 600 thousand children under the age of ten. This comes at a time when a UN official warned that "the West Bank is facing serious violence, problems and violations at this stage."

In its latest update issued on Thursday, the office reported that the World Health Organization provided supplies to three hospitals and five health partners that will serve 250 thousand people throughout the Gaza Strip.

At the same time, the organization supported the expansion of the triage and emergency departments at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, by providing tents and 20 additional beds.
This week, UNICEF provided essential health kits for children, medicines for children and supplies for newborns to more than 20,000 people at Al Awda Hospital, located in northern Gaza.
More food assistance
OCHA also said that food security partners reported that since 3 February, some 860,000 cooked meals have been distributed in some 180 kitchens every day, an increase of more than 10 per cent compared to 780,000 meals in the second week of the month.
WFP reported that subsidized bread is now available in 24 retail shops in the southern Gaza Strip so that families can safely access essential food items without crowding.

At least four distribution points have been set up in northern Gaza to ease the burden on families who have had to travel long distances to access food, with increased transport costs and protection risks.
Back to school
OCHA and partners on the ground continue to scale up assistance, and work to improve access to water and sanitation has been ongoing over the past two days.
He added that two water points had been established and expanded in the northern Gaza governorate, and that two sections of water networks had been repaired to support long-term water provision in Khan Younis. The office also said that as of Wednesday, 100,000 children had enrolled in schools after the start of the new school year, which began on 23 February.

He added that 165 public schools had reopened across Gaza. This will be the first time students have returned to in-person learning in 16 months.

The situation in the West Bank
Regarding the situation in the West Bank, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs confirmed that Israeli forces’ operations continue in Jenin, Tulkarm and Tubas, resulting in further casualties, displacement and disruption of access to health care, water, electricity and other basic services.

He added that overall, the situation across the West Bank remains of grave concern. He reiterated the need to respect international law and protect civilians. In turn, the Director of the UN Human Rights Office in the occupied Palestinian territory, Ajith Sungai, said that the main concern is that the West Bank is already experiencing a state of emergency. “It is no longer a question of sounding the alarm about an emergency or violence and violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law in the West Bank. But we have already reached that stage,” he told UN News.
He warned that the bottom line of what is happening now is that 40,000 people from Jenin, Tulkarm and Tubas have been forcibly displaced by Israeli forces, using so-called methods and means of warfare including heavy weapons such as fighter jets, and more recently tanks, and shoulder-fired missiles.
Songai added that from the testimonies collected by the human rights office, people are being told to leave the camps in those areas as soon as possible, “and that returning is not an option,” adding that “if you look at the public message that Israeli ministers are issuing, it says that Palestinians cannot return for about a year.”
Severe restrictions on movement
The head of the UN human rights office in the occupied Palestinian territory pointed to other issues including settler violence and “severe restrictions on people’s movement.”
He noted that at least 18 new metal barriers or checkpoints have been erected since January 2025, and 149 since October 7, 2023.

“What happens with these restrictions is that people are unable to work and live a normal daily life. It separates families, it takes people away from their schools, their offices, their relatives. It really breaks the fabric of society,” he added.

The UN official also pointed to the eviction of Palestinian shepherds, where “we see settlers coming into herding communities and threatening them and creating a sense of fear in the community that drives them (the shepherds) to leave.”