Gaza internet outage ends, killings of food-seeking civilians continue

OCHA said its humanitarian partners continue to warn of the risk of famine in Gaza amid catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity.

UNITED NATIONS, June 16 (Xinhua) -- The internet outage which paralyzed humanitarian aid in Gaza has ended, but the famine threat and the killings of food-seeking Palestinians continue as fuel dips critically low, UN humanitarian said on Monday.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said telecommunications cables in Gaza were repaired over the weekend, allowing internet services to resume after days of complete outage.

The office said that the cut-off halted most aid operation communications and the ability of many Gazans to receive safety warnings and evacuation orders from the Israeli authorities.

OCHA said communications were restored after the Israeli authorities allowed access for telecommunications company teams to repair damaged cables, following repeated denials.

Partners reported on Monday that there was another outage in central and southern Gaza, but urgent repairs were coordinated between the repair teams and the authorities to restore connectivity.

The humanitarian office said that attacks on civilians continued, including the reported killing and injury of people seeking food or other aid from the militarized distribution centers run by Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Partners working on child protection say several children were temporarily separated from their families due to mass movements around the hubs. The partners are working to reduce risks for children near the depots.

OCHA said life-saving aid must reach people in need in line with humanitarian principles, and humanitarians must be allowed to do their work. More essential supplies must be allowed to enter.

The humanitarians said that Israeli authorities continue to deny many humanitarian movements. Seven out of 17 attempts to coordinate such movements were denied on Monday, including for trucking water and removing solid waste.

The office said the United Nations and its partners managed on Saturday to collect nearly 100 truckloads from the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem border crossing, carrying wheat flour and other food supplies. The partners continue to send supplies to the checkpoint where the Israeli authorities are channeling the shipments.

On Sunday, humanitarians said they were able to transport more than 50 Israeli-approved truckloads to the crossing from Israel. The payloads await clearance into Gaza.

The office said its humanitarian partners continue to warn of the risk of famine in Gaza amid catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity. The partners provide support with whatever supplies remain available. Last week, a daily average of 200,000 meals were delivered through 44 community kitchens.

Prices in Gaza continue to skyrocket. OCHA said that last week in Gaza City, a 25kg bag of flour was sold for 1,600 shekels (about 450 U.S. dollars) on the commercial market.

Fuel stocks are at critically low levels. The office said more fuel is urgently needed for essential services, such as adequate water supplies. In the south of Gaza, diesel supplies are almost running out.

"Today (Monday), Israeli authorities once again denied an attempt to coordinate the collection of some fuel supplies from Rafah," OCHA said. "Partners are rationing the stocks they have as they continue attempting to coordinate access."

The office said that humanitarian, communications and banking activities may soon halt unless the supply of fuel resumes immediately or the United Nations is enabled by the Israeli authorities to retrieve available stocks from areas inside Gaza that require coordination with authorities for routes and access.

OCHA said another continuing problem in Gaza, displacement orders, is increasing people's shelter needs and driving further overcrowding at displacement sites. For more than 100 days, the Israeli authorities have banned the entry of any shelter materials into Gaza. The materials require frequent replenishment, as they wear out quickly or may be left behind when people are forced into another displacement.

The UN Population Fund said pregnant mothers are living on a fraction of the food they need to survive. A growing number of mothers suffer from malnutrition, and one in three expectant mothers experiences a high-risk pregnancy at a time when half of essential maternal health medicines are no longer in stock.

The United Nations and its humanitarian partners on Monday launched a "hyper-prioritized global appeal." It is for 114 million people globally facing life-threatening needs due to funding cuts. OCHA said that of the 4.07 billion U.S. dollars being sought for about 3 million people in the occupied Palestinian territory, only 16 percent of it is funded. ■