Attachments
SITUATION OVERVIEW
The latest large-scale escalation of conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory on 7 October 2023 has led to an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Intense Israeli bombardment and ground operations as well as heavy fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups continue to be reported across much of the Gaza Strip.
As of 27 June, UNRWA estimates that some 75 per cent of Gaza’s population (1.75 million out of 2.3 million people), more than half of whom are children, are displaced. Most are living in makeshift structures, tents, or out in the open. Access to basic services remains severely limited — the lack of food, water, fuel, basic items, and poor hygiene practices, further exacerbate people’s living conditions, amplifying protection and mental health risks, as well as the risks associated with the spread of disease.
IOM is urgently appealing for resources to support its response to the rising critical humanitarian needs of hundreds of thousands of civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and neighbouring countries affected by the ongoing hostilities. Your support is critical in our mission to deliver emergency aid to displaced families in Gaza and in surrounding countries impacted by the crisis and hostilities.
• Access constraints continue to severely hamper the delivery of essential humanitarian assistance and services across Gaza, including the provision of critical food and nutrition aid, medical care, protection and shelter support, as well as water, sanitation, and hygiene services.
• The inability of humanitarian agencies to consistently and safely transport aid commodities from Kareem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) Crossing and the closure of Rafah Crossing are significantly undermining aid operations. Deteriorating public order is severely impacting aid operations and humanitarian workers.
• Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths emphasized the need for safety and security, as well as humanitarian access. UN aid teams and partner organizations remain deeply committed to delivering lifesaving supplies to Gazans in need, despite the increasing dangers of working there.
• Save the Children estimates that up to 21,000 children are missing in the chaos of the war in Gaza, many trapped beneath rubble, detained, buried in unmarked graves, or lost from their families.
• A high risk of famine persists across the whole Gaza Strip and will for as long as conflict continues, and humanitarian access is restricted. About 96 per cent of the population in the Gaza Strip (2.15M people) face high levels of acute food insecurity, as assessed by the multipartner Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) initiative.
• UNRWA describes worsening living conditions in Gaza with hundreds of thousands of people deprived of adequate shelter, food, medicine and clean water with trash piling up and ability to dispose garbage, and treat sewage severely restricted.
• There remain critically low levels of fuel available to carry out aid missions impacting aid operations and the functioning of critical water, sanitation, health and other facilities across the Gaza Strip.
• With exchanges of fire and rhetoric rising in Lebanon, the UN Secretary-General has urged the parties to recommit to the full implementation of resolution 1701 and immediately return to a cessation of hostilities along the Blue Line.