Humanitarian Situation Update #187 | Gaza Strip

The Humanitarian Situation Update is issued by OCHA Occupied Palestinian Territory three times per week. The Gaza Strip is covered on Mondays and Fridays, and the West Bank is covered on Wednesdays. The next update will be issued on 8 July.

Key Highlights

• Nine out of 10 people in Gaza are currently internally displaced, the UN estimates. 
• About 250,000 people are estimated to live in areas in eastern Khan Younis and Rafah recently placed under an evacuation order by the Israeli authorities; the European Gaza Hospital is now empty and non-functional. 
• Lack of fuel is increasingly hampering life-saving health services and the operation of vital water and sanitation infrastructure, humanitarian actors report.  
• Displaced people in Jabalya Refugee Camp are facing extremely dire living conditions, including critical shortages of water, unsafe shelters, and insufficient food assistance, an inter-agency assessment mission finds. 

Humanitarian Developments 

• Israeli bombardment from the air, land, and sea continues to be reported across much of the Gaza Strip, resulting in further civilian casualties, displacement, and destruction of houses and other civilian infrastructure. Ground incursions and heavy fighting also continue to be reported. 
• Between the afternoons of 1 and 4 July, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, 111 Palestinians were killed and 385 were injured. Between 7 October 2023 and 4 July 2024, at least 38,011 Palestinians were killed and 87,445 were injured in Gaza, according to MoH in Gaza. Casualty figures covering the period until the afternoon of 5 July are not available as of the time of reporting.  
• The following are among the deadliest incidents reported on 2 and 3 July:  
  • On 2 July, at 15:20, 12 Palestinians, including five women, were reportedly killed and others injured when a house was hit in the Abu Oraif area in Deir Al Balah. The Head of the Burns and Plastic Surgery Department at Nasser Medical Complex, Dr. Hasan Hamdan, and his family members were reportedly identified among the fatalities. 
  • On 2 July, at about 23:00, seven Palestinians, including three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a house was hit in Ash Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, in Gaza city. 
  • On 3 July, at about 9:30, four Palestinians were reportedly killed and 17 others injured when people trying to return to Ash Shuja’iyeh area of Gaza city were hit. 
  • On 3 July, at about 21:30, four Palestinians, including a woman and three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when an apartment was hit in Al Mashahra area, in At Tuffah neighbourhood, east of Gaza city. 
  • On 3 July, at about 17:00, five Palestinians were reportedly killed and others injured when a house was hit at As Samer Junction in central Gaza city. 
• Between the afternoons of 1 and 5 July, six Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza, according to the Israeli military. Between 7 October 2023 and 5 July, according to the Israeli military and official Israeli sources cited in the media, over 1,523 Israelis were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023. These include 323 soldiers killed in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation. In addition, 2,069 soldiers were reported injured since the beginning of the ground operation. As of 5 July, it is estimated that 120 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including fatalities whose bodies are withheld. 
• The United Nations, following consultations with partners and for the purposes of humanitarian programming, estimates that the population currently present in the Gaza Strip is about 2.1 million people, down from the initially projected 2024 figure of 2.3 million people by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). According to the Border Authority, about 110,000 Palestinians have exited Gaza through Egypt, and more than 38,000 have been killed in the hostilities, according to MoH. The entire population is considered in need of humanitarian assistance across all sectors. The United Nations and its partners further estimate that the number of people internally displaced within Gaza has risen from 1.7 to 1.9 million people. In other words, approximately nine out of ten people in Gaza are now estimated to be internally displaced, many multiple times. Mass displacement has been predominantly driven by evacuation orders issued by the Israeli military, extensive destruction of both private and public infrastructure, restricted access to essential services, and the persistent fear of ongoing hostilities. 
• In the second largest evacuation order since October 2023, on 1 July, the Israeli military ordered residents of 71 residential blocs in eastern Khan Younis and Rafah to immediately evacuate westwards to what the military defines as a "humanitarian zone" in Al Mawasi. The evacuation area encompasses vital service facilities, including 92 schools, four medical points, two primary health centres, 14 hot meal kitchens for internally displaced persons (IDPs), a major landfill, one sewage treatment facility and one hospital (see more details below). The UN and its partners estimate that about 250,000 people may have resided in the evacuation area when the order was issued. IDPs moved toward western Khan Younis and Deir Al Balah, which are already overcrowded and lack basic services, critical infrastructure, shelter materials and spaces to accommodate the new influx of IDPs. Moreover, IDPs continue to fear for their safety across Gaza. On 3 July, at least one Palestinian was reportedly killed, and 10 others injured, when a five-story building near Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis was hit, a strike that also caused damage to tents of IDPs taking shelter at a nearby UNRWA school. 
• On 2 July, when the Israeli authorities clarified that the 1 July evacuation order did not apply to the European Gaza Hospital (EGH), most medical staff and patients, including those who were on their beds with their drips, had already hastily fled the hospital in fear that it would soon become non-functional based on past experiences at hospitals that were located in areas slated for evacuation. EGH was completely empty by the evening of 2 July, and all 320 patients and medical personnel had left. The majority of patients were referred to Nasser Medical Complex, which reached full capacity with more than 350 inpatients, amid critical shortages of medications and supplies for surgeries. As of 4 July, with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and OCHA, key medical equipment, including beds, operating theatre equipment, anaesthesia machines, ventilators, monitors and extracorporeal circulators, were transferred from EGH to Nasser Medical Complex to respond to growing needs. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which had one medical-surgical team comprising doctors, nurses and physiotherapists embedded within the EGH, was also forced to transfer its staff and patients to the Red Cross Field Hospital in Al Mawasi area of Rafah. Al Amal Hospital in Khan Younis was similarly affected, receiving an influx of injured people after they could no longer be absorbed at Nasser complex. 
• The evacuation of the EGH, a 650-bed health facility, has further reduced available hospital bed capacity in southern Gaza, where the majority of Gaza’s population is currently concentrated. According to the Health Cluster, cumulative bed capacity at the six partially functional hospitals in southern Gaza – including three in Deir al Balah and three in Khan Younis – now stands at 1,334 beds. At present, only 15 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain functional, albeit partially, and most are only partially accessible to patients due to insecurity, access constraints and damage sustained by the facilities. In addition, out of 103 primary health-care centres, only 43 (42 per cent) continue to operate, albeit partially, and, out of 10 field hospitals, all in southern Gaza, only four are fully functional, four are partially functional, and two are non-functional. 
• The lack of fuel continues to severely compromise the provision of vital humanitarian assistance, including live-saving health services. According to the WHO, power blackouts at neonatal, dialysis, and intensive care units are already placing lives at risk and “injured people are dying because ambulances are facing delays due to shortages of fuel.” While the Health and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) clusters alone require 80,000 and 70,000 litres of fuel per day, respectively, to maintain critical operations, just over 195,000 litres of fuel entered Gaza between 25 and 27 June, the WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, Hanan Balkhy noted. On 5 July, WHO Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, stated that the UN and partners are being forced to “make impossible choices” and triage among the most critical needs, with limited fuel supplies now being directed to key hospitals, such as Nasser Medical Complex, Al Amal Hospital and Kuwaiti Field Hospital in Khan Younis, as well as to 21 Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) ambulances. 
• Fuel shortages continue to have an acute impact on water and sanitation infrastructure and living conditions across Gaza. According to the WASH Cluster, between 22 and 28 June, only 51,490 litres of fuel were received by partners to operate critical water and wastewater facilities. While more than the preceding week, this amount only meets about 10 per cent of daily WASH requirements (about 7,350 out of 70,000 litres). As a result, at least 50 per cent of water wells across Gaza that remain functional temporarily stopped pumping water, cutting their combined water production in half, and about 106 water trucks have ceased operations. In addition, two desalination plants in central and southern Gaza ceased operations on 30 June and 1 July due to the lack of fuel. Damage sustained by Al Muntar water pipeline in Gaza city, one of three pipelines coming from Israel, led to its shutdown over the past week, causing further reductions in total water supply in the Gaza Strip, from an average of 112,000 cubic metres per day as of 26 June to an estimated 66,200 cubic metres per day since 30 June, the WASH Cluster reported. On 4 July, the Emergency Committee of Khan Younis Municipality warned that fuel shortages have halted the operation of wastewater systems and aggravated sewage overflow into populated areas in southern Gaza, heightening health and environmental risks.  
• On 19 June 2024, an inter-agency team carried out an assessment in Jabalya Refugee Camp in North Gaza to identify priority needs following the Israeli forces’ withdrawal from the area on 30 May. The assessment covered three displacement sites, including a non-functional hospital and an UNRWA school serving as an emergency shelter site, that host over 17,600 people in total. Key assessment findings include the following:  
  • There are critical shortages of safe drinking water. The military incursion severely affected the camp’s water supply and only a fraction of water wells remain functional. Sanitation conditions are dire; sewage is overflowing and leaking near sleeping areas, solid waste is accumulating, and there are no cleaning materials available. Cases of Hepatitis A, skin diseases, particularly among children, and respiratory illnesses are on the rise and have been exacerbated by the lack of adequate medical facilities and supplies. 
  • Food assistance is insufficient, with people relying on bread and canned food when available. A severe lack of fresh vegetables, fruits and protein sources, such as meat and milk, is contributing to health issues, including anaemia among children due to iron deficiency. No commercial food supplies have reportedly reached the area for nearly two months and the prices of the few products available on the local market are exorbitantly high. No screenings to detect malnutrition are currently conducted at the three sites and blanket supplementary feeding was not provided in the two weeks preceding the assessment.  
  • Lack of structured support and assistive devices for persons with disabilities are hindering their movement and access to essential services. Some people with hearing impairment were reportedly found dead, presumably due to their inability to hear warnings from Israeli forces. 
  • School-age children lack access to any form of education and are exposed to serious risks, including child labour, with tens of unaccompanied and separated children being particularly vulnerable.  
  • The camp has a significant number of vulnerable individuals, including unaccompanied and separated children, Persons with Disabilities, and women facing increased violence. Protection mechanisms are inadequate, with reports of abuse, child labour, and deteriorating mental health among the residents. 
  • Thousands of people are living in heavily damaged and unsafe structures, with piles of rubble obstructing aid delivery and access by emergency service providers, while the prevalence of unexploded ordnance continues to pose significant risks to people across Jabalya. Communications are also extremely challenging, hampering people’s ability to seek assistance. 
• Ongoing hostilities and access constraints continue to severely hinder the delivery of life-saving aid across the Gaza Strip. Between 1 and 4 July, out of 13 planned humanitarian assistance missions coordinated with the Israeli authorities to northern Gaza, one (eight per cent) was facilitated, nine (69 per cent) were impeded, one (eight per cent) was denied access, and two (15 per cent) were cancelled due to logistical, operational, or security reasons. In addition, out of 55 coordinated humanitarian assistance movements in southern Gaza, 43 (78 per cent) were facilitated by the Israeli authorities, six (11 per cent) were impeded, one (two per cent) was denied access, and five (nine per cent) were cancelled. Humanitarian missions to northern Gaza continued to face extensive delays, inconsistent procedures, and bottlenecks; although there are two checkpoints where Israeli forces control movements between northern and southern Gaza, missions are funnelled through a single checkpoint on any given day and the checkpoint on Salah Ad Din Road has been closed since 27 June. Aid convoys continue to be forced to wait long hours at holding points in exposed locations before being allowed to move towards the checkpoint, posing safety and security risks for humanitarian personnel. Movements to and from Kerem Shalom Crossing also continue to be hampered by security risks, most recently following the issuance of an evacuation order for areas in eastern Khan Younis that encompass parts of Salah Ad Din Road, a crucial artery for the passage of humanitarian goods and personnel 

Funding 

• As of 5 July, Member States have disbursed about US$1.24 billion out of $3.42 billion (36 per cent) requested to meet the most critical needs of 2.3 million* people in Gaza and 800,000 people in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, between January and December 2024. For funding analysis, please see the Flash Appeal Financial Tracking dashboard. (*2.3 million reflects the projected population of the Gaza Strip upon issuance of the Flash Appeal in April 2024. As of July 2024, the UN estimates that about 2.1 million people remain in the Gaza Strip, and will be using this updated number for programmatic purposes.) 
• The occupied Palestinian territory Humanitarian Fund (oPt HF) has 109 ongoing projects, for a total of $78.9 million, addressing urgent needs in the Gaza Strip (86 per cent) and West Bank (14 per cent). Of these projects, 69 projects are being implemented by international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), 26 by national NGOs and 14 by UN agencies. A summary of the oPt HF activities and challenges in May 2024 is available through this link and the 2023 Annual Report of the oPt HF can be accessed here. Private donations are collected directly through the oPt HF.