Sigrid Kaag reiterated Secretary-General António Guterres’s concern that such an operation at present time would be potentially disastrous for innocent civilians. “There are more than a million people crammed in Rafah. It’s not intended for a million people in shelters, in random sort of plastic sheeted constructions. Health conditions are very worrisome,” she told correspondents…
There have been reports of damage to Nasser Hospital’s orthopedic unit, reducing its ability to provide urgent medical care, WHO spokesperson Tarik Jašarević, told correspondents at a press briefing in Geneva. “More degradation to the hospital means more lives being lost,” he said. According to the UN agency, of the 36 hospitals in the war-ravaged…
The Israeli military confirmed on Thursday in a tweet that its special forces had conducted what they called a “precise and limited operation” inside the Nasser hospital in southern Gaza, the largest functioning health facility in the region. In a tweet on Wednesday, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, head of the World Health Organization (WHO), expressed alarm…
As Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese has a mandate from the Council which includes investigating violations, undertaking regular visits or missions, and reporting on findings. Israel’s Foreign Minister and Interior Minister announced this week that she was prohibited from entering the country following recent comments…
Agency employees and volunteers at the UNRWA-affiliated Deir Al-Balah Preparatory School in central Gaza told UN News that despite difficult conditions restricting the movement of workers at many international aid organizations, they continue preparing and distributing food rations. Yousuf Sagr of UNRWA “People cannot buy any supplies due to their lack [of availability], and even…
Echoing renewed deep concerns by the UN’s top humanitarian official Martin Griffiths that an assault on Rafah “could lead to a slaughter”, the World Health Organization (WHO) also firmly rejected allegations of years-long collusion with non-health partners either in or underneath Gaza’s hospitals. ‘There is no collusion’ “We definitely cannot be louder in saying that no, there…
Getting enough supplies into and across Gaza now depends on the opening of new entry routes, more trucks being allowed through border checks each day, fewer restrictions on the movement of humanitarian workers, and safety guarantees for people accessing and distributing aid, they said. They warned that humanitarian action is seriously limited by the closure…
Briefing the Security Council, Hans Grundberg recalled “steady progress” in UN efforts to mediate the the complex decade-long crisis, set off by the overthrow of the Government by Houthi rebels in 2014. However, the locus of attention has shifted dramatically since December 2023 due to the Israel-Gaza war and the military escalation in the Red…
UN News spoke with Elena Panova, UN Resident Coordinator in Egypt, and Neveen Alqabbaj, Vice-President of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society and Egypt’s Minister of Social Solidarity, about how thousands of tonnes of aid and lifesaving services get delivered in times of crisis. Neveen Alqabbaj: The Egyptian Red Crescent Society was on top of the…
“So far, we have delivered 447 metric tons of medical supplies to Gaza, but it’s a drop in the ocean of need, which continues to grow every day,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Hospitals in crisis Only 15 out of 36 hospitals are still “partially or minimally functional” in the enclave, Tedros said, amid fresh reports…
