UN launches emergency plan to support Palestinians affected by Israel’s recent war

The United Nations has launched an emergency plan to support those Palestinians affected by Israel’s recent war on the besieged Gaza Strip.

United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory Lynn Hastings said in a statement on Thursday that the humanitarian plan was aimed at supporting war-stricken Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem al-Quds.

Along with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock, Hastings called on all members of the world body to contribute to the $95 million plan, Palestine’s official Wafa news agency reported.

According to Hastings' press statement published by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the occupied Palestinian territory, she also urged the member states to allow for a swift and full implementation of the plan over the next three months.

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Israel launched a bloody bombing campaign on the densely-populated Gaza on May 10 after harassment of Palestinians in Jerusalem al-Quds and attempts to steal their lands in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of the city.

At least 255 Palestinians, including 69 children, were killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip during 11 days of the conflict. Israel’s airstrikes also inflicted widespread devastation on the already impoverished territory.

In response to the Israeli bloodshed, the Gaza-based resistance movements fired more than 4,000 rockets into the occupied territories, some reaching as far as Tel Aviv and even Haifa and Nazareth to the north.

The Israeli regime was eventually forced to announce a ceasefire, brokered by Egypt, which came into force in the early hours of May 21.

During a visit to Gaza, immediately after the truce, Hastings met Palestinians who had lost their homes and livelihoods as a result of the brutal war, the report said, adding she had seen damage to civilian infrastructure which had left 800,000 people without regular access to safe piped water.

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According to the statement, the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza inflicted damage to wastewater infrastructure, resulting in large volumes of untreated sewage water being released into the sea and creating health hazards and pollution. 

The damage that the war inflicted on 54 education facilities impedes children's access to education, it said, adding damage to six hospitals and 11 primary healthcare centers also hampers the delivery of health services.

Limited fuel and damage to the electricity network reduced access to power to a daily average of 4-6 hours throughout the blockaded enclave, further restricting the provision of these basic services. 

Earlier this week, Hastings said she had allocated $18 million from the oPt Humanitarian Fund. 

“With this funding, in addition to $4.5 million released by the Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock, the UN and NGO partners are already restoring people's access to food, water, healthcare, and other basic services. However, more funding is needed from Member States to ensure humanitarian needs are met,” the statement said.

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Guterres, for his part, highlighted the need to support the war-stricken Palestinian families.
“In recent weeks, the world watched as civilians endured yet another cycle of devastating violence and destruction. Children and adults were killed, thousands were injured. Families have had their lives torn apart. It is our duty now to scale up support to those who need it the most. We must not fail them,” he added.
 

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