Middle East & North Africa
OCHA: Gaza braces for winter as attacks continue and aid access stays restricted
The UN humanitarian office says aid groups are preparing for Gaza's rainy season while strikes and shelling continue, and that supplies delivered so far are insufficient.
The United Nations and its partners are stepping up preparations for Gaza’s cold and rainy season while attacks affecting civilians continue, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on 14 October.
According to OCHA, humanitarian partners recorded multiple airstrikes, shelling, demolition blasts, naval fire and shooting in all of Gaza’s governorates over the two days before the statement. It said the incidents were concentrated west of the so-called “yellow line”, a boundary set by the Israeli authorities.
Winter supplies and limits on access
Aid groups have delivered additional fuel, plastic tarpaulins, winter clothing, medicines and medical supplies. OCHA described the quantities as “insufficient to meet people’s needs”.
The office pointed to underfunding and to restrictions imposed by Israel as the main obstacles. These include bans on the operations of some humanitarian partners, limits on imports such as engine oil and spare parts, and restricted access to more than 64 per cent of Gaza’s land, according to the UN account of the briefing. The Israeli authorities’ position on these restrictions was not part of the UN statement.
Raid in Al Bira, Ramallah
Separately, the UN human rights office in the occupied Palestinian territory condemned an Israeli raid on 13 October on premises in Al Bira, Ramallah. Israeli forces said the premises belonged to two Palestinian civil society groups, Addameer and the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committee. The UN human rights office said soldiers confiscated files and equipment and detained a journalist and a former prisoner, and called for an immediate end to the crackdown on Palestinian civic space.
Humanitarian partners said that raids and detentions of rights defenders and protection workers have had a “chilling effect” on their work.
The account above is based on statements by UN bodies as relayed in UN News on 14 October. Figures on access and restrictions are OCHA’s; the report does not include an Israeli response.