Gaza: Nearly 23 million tonnes of debris ‘will take years to clear’

In a fresh alert about the disastrous humanitarian emergency still unfolding in the enclave, the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, said on Friday that it will “take years” before the Strip is made safe again.

The lives of more than two million Gazans have been devastated by daily Israeli bombardment, since Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on 7 October, the UN agency noted in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

As the largest relief agency in Gaza, UNWRA continues to provide lifesaving supplies and services to more than 1.5 million displaced people in the south of the enclave. The agency runs shelters for more than one million people, providing them with humanitarian relief and primary healthcare.

No let-up in violence

Lifesaving humanitarian work has continued amid intense Israeli bombardment and ground operations – as well as heavy fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups.

In its latest update on the emergency, the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, reported ongoing violence “across much of the Gaza Strip, particularly in the Hamad area of Khan Younis…The hostilities are causing further civilian casualties, displacement and destruction of houses and other civilian infrastructure.”

OCHA noted that mine action partners are now carrying out “assessments of explosive threats” and educating Gazans about the dangers. 

“Larger-scale assessments are urgently required, but response efforts have been hampered by restrictions on the import of humanitarian mine action supplies and authorization requirements for the deployment of specialized personnel.”

Funding boost

The news came as Australia became the latest country to announce that it intended to resume funding UNRWA, which saw international donor support evaporate, amid Israeli allegations that some of the agency’s staff had participated in the 7 October Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel.

A high-level UN investigation continues into the claims, which UNRWA is also complementing with its own inquiry. Shortly after the allegations were made public, nine UNRWA staff were dismissed.

Seaborne aid contribution

Meanwhile, efforts to secure a new maritime aid route from Cyprus to Gaza continued on Friday as the NGO ship Open Arms moved closer to the Gaza coastline.

The vessel, which open-source satellites showed moored off the coast of Gaza City in the north of the enclave on Friday morning, left Larnaca in southern Cyprus on Tuesday with 200 tonnes of relief supplies. These are to be delivered ashore once a jetty is built south of Gaza City, according to reports.

The initiative involves UN-partner World Central Kitchen and the search-and-rescue charity Open Arms, reportedly in coordination with the Israeli authorities and international partners.

More updates to follow…