Gaza Humanitarian Response Update | 27 May - 9 June 2024

Response

• Partners continue to conduct Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) screenings in shelters and healthcare facilities across the Gaza Strip despite ongoing challenges. Since mid-January, 108,750 children aged 6-59 months have been screened for malnutrition, including 26,082 children screened in May. Of the total, 8,022 have been diagnosed with acute malnutrition and have been receiving treatment in line with the simplified protocols; these include 6,176 children diagnosed with Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM), and 1,846 with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). There is an urgency to further scale up the active identification of malnutrition cases at the community level to ensure that all children in need are promptly identified and receive treatment, but this is being hampered by insecurity, access constraints and large-scale displacement.  
• Between 27 May and 9 June, WFP and its partners provided a 15-day allocation of Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements (LBNS) for the prevention of malnutrition to about 6,000 children under the age of five and 2,500 pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBW) in Deir al Balah and Al Mawasi area of both Rafah and Khan Younis. 
• Nutrition Cluster partners continue to expand service delivery points serving displaced people in Al Mawasi area of Khan Younis, Deir al Balah and Gaza city.  
• In June so far, 1,488 caregivers of children under the age of two, including PBW, have received sensitization sessions on Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) Practices in Emergencies and 389 mother-to-mother support groups remain operational.   
• WHO and Cluster partners and MoH in Gaza continue to offer stabilization services for children suffering from SAM with complications. To-date, 72 children have received treatment. However, due to the escalation of hostilities, the Stabilization Centre in Rafah has been closed and the one in Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza is out of service. Two Stabilization Centers operated by the International Medical Corps (IMC) remain operational in Rafah and Deir al Balah. 

Challenges

• Access constraints continue to hamper the early detection of cases among women and children that require nutrition services and the scale-up of operational presence to provide needed support. In northern Gaza, limited access prevents the establishment of new nutrition services.   
• Despite redeployment efforts, the number of nutrition partners in Khan Younis is insufficient to address the increased need for nutrition services following large-scale displacement to the area, thereby heightening the risk of inadequate or no follow-up on cases of children under treatment. 
• Difficulties in identifying adequate space to establish nutrition sites and warehouses for nutrition commodities in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis. 

Response

• Partners are scaling up food security response following modest improvements in assistance entering the Gaza Strip. This includes the distribution of food parcels, fresh produce and bread to support the high number of displaced people in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah as well as in North Gaza. As of 6 June, 11 out of 17 bakeries supported by humanitarian partners across the Gaza Strip were operational, including one in Jabalya, four in Gaza city, and six in Deir al Balah.  
• In early June, a daily average of 600,000 hot meals prepared in at least 170 kitchens were provided to families across the Strip. Through joint efforts with the Health and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) clusters, clean water has been provided to partners to support community kitchens, in addition to sensitization sessions on the importance of safe food handling and storage to ensure food safety and prevent food-borne diseases.  
• The Cluster continues to advocate for safe and unimpeded humanitarian access, particularly to hard-to-reach locations where there is limited information. Concurrently, partners are mobilizing to assist families in Rafah and North Gaza, including the most vulnerable who are unable to leave.

Challenges

• Food insecurity remains extremely concerning and there is a critical need to expand the volume, frequency and geographic coverage of life-saving food assistance. Distribution efforts are constrained by the limited number of entry points into Gaza, sub-optimal operating hours at crossings and checkpoints, and the limited number of trucks allowed access. Other types of critical aid must also reach people in need to roll back months of near starvation conditions.  
• A shortage of cooking gas, combined with the absence of a public power supply, is hindering the ability to keep community kitchens and bakeries running and to ensure proper food preparation and nutrition in affected communities. The six currently non-operational bakeries, all in southern Gaza, were forced to halt operations either due to the ongoing hostilities (five bakeries) or the lack of cooking gas (one bakery). 
• Use of unsafe alternatives for cooking, such as trash and plastic, is increasing protection risks and environmental hazards.  
• The Rafah military operation has negatively affected the already very limited fresh food production, particularly in eastern Rafah and Khan Younis, as people have been forced to leave their farms unattended.   
• Lack of sufficient fuel for essential services and operations.
• Infrastructural and security hurdles continue to hinder mobility and safe humanitarian access within Gaza. 

Response

• Over the past two weeks, with support from WASH Cluster partners, the Coastal Municipal Water Utility/Palestinian Water Authority (CMWU/PWA) has produced between 95,000 and 108,000 cubic metres of water per day for safe drinking and domestic purposes across the Gaza Strip. CMWU/PWA has also set up 10 tap stands to connect some informal displacement sites in Khan Younis with the water distribution network.  
• Cluster partners have increased their water trucking capacity to serve IDPs in sites that are relatively less served by the water network.  
• The Cluster is mapping and continuously updating data on water delivery points to provide a comprehensive overview of their locations, types, and daily water volumes. A Water Points Dashboard is available at: Gaza Strip - Water Points. 
• Ongoing work by UNICEF to complete a project within seven weeks to repair and rehabilitate all six primary pumping stations in Khan Younis as cases of sewage overflow continue to be reported. All six sewage pumping stations in the governorate have become non-operational and the collection system is severely damaged. 
• WHO has provided water quality testing kits to UNRWA and MoH and trained them on their use.  
• Primary and secondary collection of solid waste is ongoing in areas south of Wadi Gaza, with an estimated 700 tons of waste transferred daily to temporary dumping sites. Work is also underway to expand solid waste collection activities by cluster partners and allocate resources to operate and rehabilitate several temporary dumping sites. A map of dumping sites and their status can be accessed here. 
• UNRWA has piloted an emergency version of the Water and Sanitation for Health Facility Improvement Tool (WASH FIT) and the Infection Prevention and Control Checklist at four of its facilities.

Challenges

• Some IDPs have settled near temporary dumping sites that are nearly full, necessitating urgent mitigation measures and management. UNDP is assessing interim solutions.
• Persistent fuel shortages continue to negatively affect the operation of WASH facilities, including water production and critically needed waste management, particularly in northern Gaza.
• Loss of WASH assets due to recent intensified military operations in Rafah and North Gaza. This includes five water wells operated by UNRWA in Jabalya, two waters wells in Rafah including one operated by UNRWA, and the Bentaymiya and El Shouot desalinisation plants.
• IDPs living in shelters do not have adequate supplies to maintain basic hygiene practices. Most IDPs are collecting water using dirty, broken or inappropriate containers, and soap is rarely present at the household level for handwashing, contributing to the spread of water-related diseases like Hepatitis A. Obstacles hamper the provision of chlorine tablets to ensure the consumption of safe drinking water and reduce the risk of communicable disease outbreaks, including Acute Watery Diarrhea.
• Although the pumping station at Sheikh Radwan Lagoon is partially functional, a consistent fuel supply remains critical to prevent overflow. The main wastewater transmission outfall from Sheikh Radwan Lagoon discharges into the sea and requires an extension to function effectively.

Response

• The Cluster continues to establish and expand Temporary Learning Sites (TLSs) for school-aged children in and around IDP shelters, including in informal sites. Currently, 15 TLSs provide education to over 17,000 children (60 per cent female; 40 per cent male) in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah. Children who have been displaced from Rafah have greatly benefited from recreational and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) interventions. The establishment of TLSs remains critical for providing non-formal learning given the large-scale damage to education infrastructure. According to the new satellite-derived damage assessment, 85.8 per cent of schools have sustained some level of building damage. In addition to allowing children to engage in structured education activities, TLSs allow children to benefit from awareness-raising sessions provided by other Clusters/organizations on a range of issues, such as unexploded ordnance (UXO), gender-based violence and child protection services.  
• The Cluster has successfully mapped community-led education initiatives, identified their needs, and is currently working on connecting them with partners for support. 
• The Cluster remains committed to prioritizing the provision of Education in Emergencies (EiE), recreational activities, and psychological support, including social emotional learning activities, to children in shelters and designated emergency shelters to help them cope with trauma and build resilience so they can thrive in the long term. Since 7 October, at least 240,505 students and teachers have been supported through psychosocial support, emergency learning, recreational supplies and activities, and awareness-raising sessions (source: Education Cluster 5W dashboard). Despite significant constraints, most Cluster activities are being implemented by local partners, who demonstrate unwavering commitment to supporting students in need.

Challenges

• Limited partners’ capacity continues to hamper the scaling up of the Education Cluster response. While many national NGOs are supporting the Cluster response, they lack the required resources, including funds and supplies, to increase the provision of recreational and psychosocial support activities. Overall, the Education Cluster response remains underfunded, with only 35 per cent of the required funds received.  
• The lack of fuel remains a major impediment; no requests for fuel by Education Cluster partners have been approved, preventing them from carrying out urgent activities.   
• Notwithstanding recent improvements, the lack of space for establishing TLSs is greatly affecting the education emergency response. This is due to the continued use of schools as shelters and the limited availability of land in informal displacement sites to establish tents for educational activities.

Response

• The 30 pre-approved Very High Frequency (VHF) digital radios were programmed by UNDSS in Jerusalem but await additional transportation clearances by Israeli authorities to be dispatched to Gaza. The dispatch of an additional 13 VHF radios is also pending transportation clearance by Israeli authorities.  

  The ETC Cluster continues to advocate for the need to import ICT and telecommunications equipment into Gaza to set up common communications services.

• For more information on ETC activities, please visit: Palestine: Conflict | Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) (etcluster.org). 

Challenges

• Due to escalating hostilities, increased restrictions on the movement of commodities, damaged infrastructure and fuel shortages, local Mobile Network Operators and Internet Service Providers in the Gaza Strip are experiencing network outages and are unable to conduct the necessary repairs. Current conditions are also rendering it difficult to maintain the functionality of the remaining network and have resulted in the loss of connectivity in Rafah.
• The availability of telecommunications equipment is severely limited, hampering the delivery of ETC services. Much equipment has been damaged or destroyed and the import of new equipment has been lengthy and challenging. Only 20 satellite phones, four VHF repeaters and four solar power solutions have been approved for importation into Gaza by Israeli authorities since 7 October 2023.
• Increasing insecurity, displacement, and relocation of staff from Rafah to Deir al Balah have rendered it difficult to deploy shared ETC communications services or provide face-to-face technical support to humanitarian responders.
• Delayed rotations of staff since early May have negatively affected the implementation of planned ETC activities.
• The lack of funding has limited the ETC Cluster’s capacity to address immediate communications needs for humanitarian responders in Gaza. Thus far, less than 32 per cent of requested funding (US$1.8 million) by the Cluster under the updated OPT Flash Appeal has been received.

Response

• Between 27 May and 2 June, 721 households received one round of emergency MPCA and 4,810 households received a second round. Overall, between 7 October and 2 June, one round of emergency MPCA was delivered to 178,944 households (1,215,348 individuals), a top-up was delivered to about 34,000 people, including persons with disabilities (PwD) and nursing mothers, and over 23,374 households received a second round.   
• Since 7 October, 131,280 households have cashed out their assistance. Cash out operations remain concentrated in the governorates south of Wadi Gaza while lack of connectivity and available agents, especially north of Wadi Gaza, continue to limit the ability of some households to cash out received assistance. About 5,920 payments have so far been cancelled after not being cashed out for months.

Challenges

• A liquidity shortage driven by the inability of banks to transfer money between branches.  
• Poor electricity supply and limited connectivity, which compromise the ability of financial service providers to make cash accessible to MPCA recipients. 
• Informal markets are the primary source of accessing goods, which complicates efforts to track distributions and gather market data. 
• Assistance falls short of needs due to price volatility and the collapse of formal markets. In recent weeks, a reported increase in private sector cargo entering Gaza has rendered commercial commodities relatively more available in the formal market.