\n
<\/p>\n
In an alert, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, relayed desperate testimonies from its colleagues who are also struggling to survive in the war-torn enclave.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re in the death phase,\u201d one UNRWA worker said. \u201cEverything around people at the moment is death, whether it\u2019s bombs or strikes, children wasting away<\/strong> in front of their eyes from malnourishment, from dehydration, and dying.\u201d<\/p>\n Doctors and nurses who continue to work in the UN agency\u2019s clinics and medical centres \u201care watching children disappear and die in front of their eyes, and there’s absolutely nothing that they can do about it,\u201d<\/strong> the worker continued.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The development comes after desperate Gazans seeking aid came under fire at the weekend \u201cfrom Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire\u201d,<\/strong> according to the UN World Food Programme (WFP).<\/p>\n In a detailed statement after the incident on Sunday 20 July, it explained that a 25-truck lorry convoy crossed the Zikim border point in northern Gaza \u201cdestined for starving communities\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Shortly after passing the final checkpoint after the Zikim crossing point, the convoy encountered large crowds of civilians waiting to access food supplies. This was when the shooting began, leaving \u201ccountless\u201d Gazans dead, WFP said, echoing reports by the health authorities.<\/p>\n Condemning the incident, WFP noted that the victims \u201cwere simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation\u201d.<\/p>\n The UN agency said furthermore that the violence had happened \u201cdespite assurances from Israeli authorities that humanitarian operational conditions would improve;<\/strong> including that armed forces will not be present nor engage at any stage along humanitarian convoy routes.\u201d<\/p>\n Without such fundamental guarantees, it will not be possible to continue providing life-saving support across the Gaza Strip, WPF said, its reaction coming a day after a reported 36 people seeking aid were reportedly killed close to a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation hub run by the Israeli and US in the south of the Strip.\u00a0<\/p>\n In central Gaza\u2019s Deir Al-Balah, meanwhile, 50,000 to 80,000 people have been impacted by a mass displacement order issued by the Israeli military \u2013 the first since war erupted on 7 October 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cThe new order cuts through Deir Al-Balah all the way to the Mediterranean Sea, further splintering the Strip,\u201d OCHA said. \u201cIt will limit the ability of the UN and our partners to move safely and effectively within Gaza, choking humanitarian access when it is needed most<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n UN staff remain in Deir Al-Balah across \u201cdozens of premises\u201d whose coordinates have been shared with the warring parties. \u201cThese locations \u2013 as with all civilian sites \u2013 must be protected, regardless of displacement orders,\u201d OCHA insisted, as\u00a0 Israeli tanks reportedly moved into southern and eastern areas of the city.<\/p>\n According to reports, this may be where some of the remaining hostages seized in Hamas-led terror attacks on 7 October 2023 in Israel may still be held.<\/p>\n The latest evacuation order means that almost 88 per cent of Gaza is impacted by displacement orders or falls within Israeli-militarized zones. Some 2.1 million civilians who have been uprooted multiple times are now squeezed into the little remaining space, where essential services have collapsed.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s nowhere for [Gazans] to escape. They are trapped,\u201d said UNRWA Senior Emergency Officer Louise Wateridge. \u201cThey cannot leave the Gaza Strip. They\u2019re trying to keep their children alive. They\u2019re trying to keep themselves alive.\u201d<\/p>\nCivilians \u2018faced sniper and tank-fire\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Deir Al-Balah evacuation shock<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Gaza cut in two<\/strong><\/h2>\n