Gaza Situation Updates June 2024

Source: Pontifical Mission in Jerusalem, UNOCHA

Joseph Hazboun, Regional Director, CNEWA/Pontifical Mission in Jerusalem writes:

As the war continues, the situation continues to be humanly catastrophic and very difficult to ponder, as the human suffering, loss of lives, and number of women and children killed are too much to bear. Yet, what makes this situation unbearable is the absence of conscience among the people responsible for this tragedy. As if the political or personal gains are much more valuable than each life lost or person injured or handicapped.

We continue to pray for justice and peace.

UNOCHA report

US President Biden proposed a ceasefire agreement and hostage release last week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under internal political pressure to end the nine-month-old war and negotiate the release all of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Hamas has called for a permanent ceasefire and withdrawal of the military from Gaza however, the Israeli government has said there is no halt in the fighting and has continued to move into areas throughout Gaza. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir (the two most right wing radical ministers) have rejected the U.S. proposal and have threatened to quit Netanyahu's coalition if he accepts a cease fire deal, while the leader of Israel's National Unity party Benny Gantz, has resigned from the war cabinet, citing the failure of the wider cabinet to agree on a plan for Gaza beyond the current war.

In the meantime, the flow of humanitarian aid supplies into the Gaza Strip is insufficient to meet the soaring needs of 2.3 million people, in which aid has decreased by 67 percent since May 7, 2024. Current Palestinian fatalities in Gaza are estimated at 37,124 while 84,712 Palestinians have been injured. Intense Israeli bombardment from air, land and sea continues to be reported across much of the Gaza Strip, including ground invasions and aerial bombardments reported in central Gaza and al-Mawasi area of Rafah. The Emergency Committee for North Gaza municipalities declared Jabalya town, Jabalya Refugee Camp, Beit Lahya and Beit Hanoun as "disaster zones."

Internally displaced people (IDPs): There are an estimated 1.7 million Gazans or 75 percent of the population that are internally displaced. There are almost no remaining stocks of tents and there is an extreme shortage of other shelter materials to address the number of displaced people caused by evacuation orders and intensified military activities within the past month. Particularly, with those who have moved from Rafah to Deir al Balah and Khan Younis and are now living facing disrupted food delivery, unsanitary conditions and facing major public health risks as a result.

Orphaned children: According to UNICEF, there are 17,000 children unaccompanied or separated from their parents. The SOS Children's village, the only currently functional shelter for children without parental care, had to relocate the children and their caregivers from Rafah to central Gaza but has a limited number of tents and no capacity to receive more children. Many of the children had already been displaced several times to escape the fighting.

Electricity: Since 11 October 2023, the Gaza Strip is under an electricity blackout.

Fuel: Fuel shortages hamper the distribution of shelter and other humanitarian assistance to the displaced population which has impacted critical water and wastewater facilities in the Gaza Strip. Currently, only two out of the three desalination plants are working in addition to limited delivery of potable water by private trucks. Several safe drinking water points have been established in the past month in Khan Younis. In other areas, water for domestic use, including personal hygiene, remains very limited.

Water and Sanitation: Transfer stations and landfills are no longer accessible, necessitating urgent upgrades to temporary dumping sites. The lack of sanitation is exasperating conditions for people across the Gaza Strip, especially where IDPs are sheltering (Khan Younis and Deir al Balah). In Gaza, 81% of households lack safe and clean water, with average household access at
less than one Liter per person per day. With regards to sanitation, as of 9 June, it is estimated that around 330,400 tons of solid waste have so far accumulated in or near populated areas across the Gaza Strip.

Health: Only 14 of Gaza's 36 hospitals are functional, all of them partially and facing critical shortages, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). In Rafah, key health services, such as dialysis, medical imaging, surgery, internal medicine, and maternity and pediatric care, are no longer available, and many of the highly skilled doctors and nurses have been displaced from the city. Across Gaza, all medical teams are facing enormous challenges in meeting needs and are watching patients die as they lack either the tools, skills or supplies to do what is needed. Doctors are struggling with infection prevention and control and are being forced to take difficult decisions, as removing a limb to save a life, according to the WHO.

Infrastructure: According to data collected between October 2023 and January 2024 in a previous interim damage assessment by the World Bank, the EU and the UN, more than 60 per cent of homes in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed or damaged, accounting for 72 per cent of the total estimated cost of direct damage to critical infrastructure (US$13.29 billion out of $18.5 billion).

Food and Nutrition: According to the World Food Program (WFP), there are no bakeries that are currently functional in Rafah and public health concerns are beyond crisis levels in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah. In northern Gaza, about 12,000 tons of aid, primarily food, arrived via the northern crossings since 1 May has provided some relief, but lack of access to clean water, nutritious foods, health care and sanitation continue to devastate the area. There is a risk of famine in northern Gaza as well as in Rafah. In fact, according to UNICEF, 9 out of 10 children in the Gaza Strip are experiencing severe food poverty, surviving on two or fewer food groups per day.

Mental Health: UNICEF reports that one million children need mental health and psychosocial support.

Update on Gaza's Christian Community:

As reported previously, almost all of the Church institutions in Gaza have sustained moderate damage or have been destroyed. Reports have emerged that NECC Mother and Child Clinic in Rafah has managed to maintain operations until May 6th when the Israeli military controlled the Rafah crossing point and ordered the people to move to designated locations; the clinic later reopened when it was designated safe to do so. Most of DSPR staff moved back to central Gaza, some are sheltering at both of the Churches. The DSPR staff rented a microbus as a mobile clinic and pharmacy for the displaced and living in tents. A car was also rented for transporting the NECC team (physicians, nurses, pharmacist, social worker, management staff and logistic staff) to several points in order to reach those who cannot access medical treatment. The mobile clinic treated 261 people on its first day, some of them received more than one service and most of them received medicine. Many people were suffering from lung infections, diarrhea, skin diseases, minor injuries and chronic diseases. Moreover, DSPR has turned its vocational training center in Shija'ia neighbourhood into a makeshift medical clinic to serve the people sheltering in Shija'ia and surrounding areas. Medical equipment and furniture were salvaged from the two NECC clinics (Shija'ia and Darraj) and medicine and supplies were stocked from donations made by WHO, ANERA and UNICEF. The average number of patients treated per day is 250 people. Moreover, in one of the rooms of the vocational training center, NECC organizes psychosocial activities or groups of children.

Several Gaza Christians have left the Gaza Strip since the war began, mostly to Egypt and abroad. There are currently around 800 Gaza Christians in Gaza, most of whom have sheltered in the two Churches, Church of Saint Porphyrius and the Holy Family Church. The Holy Family Church now hosts 170 families, comprising a total of 480 individuals and a nearby elderly home hosts 63 children and elderly people. St. Porphyrius Church currently hosts 91 families, totaling 239 individuals. Both Churches are facing difficulties obtaining enough food to feed the community.

Although food is available, it is insufficient to meet the needs of the entire community. The situation is exacerbated by increased food prices. Vegetables and canned goods are particularly scarce and, when available, are at a high price. This scarcity is primarily due to limited humanitarian reaching northern Gaza. At St Porphyrius Church, bread is bought now from a local bakery that has resumed operations.

Despite these challenges, the Holy Family Church extends its support to the community beyond its walls. The Holy Family Church provides food and bottled water to those in need in the immediate area. Additionally, the Caritas Medical Center, in cooperation with the Holy Family Church, provides basic healthcare services and psychological support for children sheltering there. St Porphyrius Church also provides additional aid when it can to the community in the surrounding areas. Both Churches have been active in the past eight months, supporting the Christian community with spiritual guidance and humanitarian aid but also providing the same aid for those in the surrounding areas. It was reported that the St Porphyrius Church is channeling electricity generated from its diesel generator to the adjacent mosque which has a water well, to pump out enough water to serve the Church and the surrounding neighbourhood.

As the war continues, more financial support is needed to help cover the costs of procuring and stocking canned goods and other foods due to limited food supplies and rising costs. St. Porphyrius Church needs canned beans, lentils, freekeh (staple grain) and preserved cheese.

CNEWA - PMP Gaza Emergency Relief Efforts:

PMP continues to coordinate with the community members and NGO partners (NECC Mother and Child Clinics and AISHA) as well as the St. Porphyrius Church, to procure and deliver humanitarian aid to those in urgent need. PMP continues to work on the ground to deliver humanitarian aid for its partners to distribute to those sheltering in the Churches as well as distributing to beneficiaries in need, specifically in Rafah and Gaza city. Since March 2024 until today, PMP has provided food supplies for the Orthodox Church (meat, vegetables and fruits, wheat flour) in addition to medicine and medical supplies especially for the elderly and children with illnesses and chronic diseases, cooking gas and 2,600 liters of diesel fuel over a period of two months which was used to operate the Orthodox Church generator to pump well- water for the displaced at the Orthodox Church as well as people sheltering in and around Al-Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza city.

Through local partners, essential humanitarian aid was delivered to Palestinian families in northern and southern Gaza Strip. PMP has been able to deliver baby milk, special vitamins and cereal food for 150 infants in addition to food packages for 170 displaced families in northern Gaza. In collaboration with AISHA in southern Gaza, food packages were delivered to 270 families of women with cancer.

With heavy hearts, PMP witnessed the departure of Christian youth from the Gaza Strip due to the terrible situation in Gaza. These young people proved to be true leaders for their community, especially in times of hardship and despair. PMP accompanied them through their university education (through the scholarship program), helped built their capacities (through youth training and employment program), in which they took leadership positions and proved themselves and their abilities. It was extremely sad to see them leave, but as PMP always states as long as they see for themselves a future in Gaza, we stand by them and support them however, if they decide to leave, we cannot blame them, we wish them every success.

Joseph Hazboun Regional Director