As the volatile region of Gaza experienced continued border closures and intensified border-crossing restrictions in July 2007, United Nations relief officials warned that these security measures were coming at a terrible cost. People living in the region suffered increasingly as restricted entry into Gaza threatened its economic sustainability, forcing most factories to close or operate at reduced capacity and depriving farmers of key export income. In light of these circumstances, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) later during the same month called for urgent aid for Gaza as fears of a humanitarian crisis mounted. UNRWA identified $30 million worth of emergency projects for Gaza that would provide employment for refugees in the region. While such projects for relief and development had been planned for the region, UN officials emphasized the importance of lifting recently-imposed border restrictions in order to avoid a humanitarian crisis.

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Gaza's 360-square-kilometre area has been inhabited by approximately 1.4 million people. Israel closed or restricted the handful of border crossings with the Gaza Strip since deadly intra-Palestinian violence erupted early in June 2007, which had subsided by the time of the press release. The cancellation of the Gaza customs code by Israeli authorities also meant that more than 1,300 containers of commercial materials destined for Gaza remained stranded at Israeli ports, and essential items such as milk powder, baby formula and vegetable oil were now in short supply. Kerem Shalom, a crossing point between Gaza and Egypt, has been the only viable crossing for Palestinians wanting to re-enter Gaza from Egypt since the Rafah crossing point was closed in June 2007, OCHA said. But Kerem Shalom remained closed to the more than 6,000 Palestinians trying to return from the Egyptian cities of Al Arish and Sheik Zoueid.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a press release in July 2007 that humanitarian imports allowed into Gaza in a week early in the month met some of the minimum food needs in the territory, where 80 per cent of the population already receive food assistance. It also stated that three quarters of Gaza's factories were either closed or operating at 20 per cent capacity, placing the direct livelihoods of about 30,000 people in jeopardy and causing at least US$ 500,000 of business losses daily. UN officials reported later during the same month that OCHA noted the layoff of 65,000 workers by companies in Gaza, following the lack of supplies there, to be capable of affecting as many as 450,000 dependents. Patients in the region had been unable to enter Egypt for medical treatment and another 400 to 700 patients were stranded in the open near the Rafah border. At the same time, border closures and restrictions had been stopping agricultural products from being exported, depriving farmers of income and leading to an overabundance within Gaza of items such as tomatoes, melons and apples, and therefore a drop in prices.

The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes emphasized during the press release that "We need to see all crossings at least as operational as they were before 9 June, or risk facing serious social, economic and humanitarian concerns."

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UNRWA called for urgent aid for Gaza later during July 2007 as fears of a humanitarian crisis in the region rose. The call came during a meeting, in Cairo, between the UNRWA Commissioner General, Karen AbuZayd, and the Secretary General of the Arab League, Amr Musa. Ms. AbuZayd stated, "We have identified nearly thirty million dollars worth of emergency projects for which we need urgent funding and I make a special appeal to Arab donors to contribute." Nearly half of the funds would be spent on job creation schemes while the remainder would fund cash assistance programmes and shelter repair and reconstruction. "The violence in Gaza, coupled with the tight closures has led to a deteriorating humanitarian situation", continued Ms. AbuZayd. "The economic deterioration manifests itself amongst the population in Gaza in the form of unemployment, which is running at around thirty six percent, and poverty, which is already affecting an estimated two thirds of households - to give just two examples." UNRWA appealed for nearly US$ 8 million for emergency cash assistance as a means of enabling refugees to meet basic needs and as a complement to food aid. In addition, the UN Agency called on donors to fund nearly US$ 9 million for shelter repair and reconstruction. "People are living in dire conditions", stressed Ms. AbuZayd. "The recent violence has damaged or destroyed thousands of buildings and there is an urgent need to have these repaired."

To temporarily alleviate current poverty and economic hardships, UNRWA would provide employment opportunities to the most needy refugee families throughout the Gaza Strip. These employment projects would create some 640,000 days of work for unemployed refugees, offering employment in UNRWA facilities and installations as well as with community-based organizations and the private sector. UNRWA further endorsed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's call for Karni crossing to be open to Palestinian commercial imports and exports.

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Restrictions had, however, being eased at some crossing points, OCHA reported. The Karni crossing has been open for wheat grain imports and the Nahal Oz fuel pipeline has been opened to allow supplies of diesel, petrol and cooking gas to be delivered. The UN, the Palestinian Authority and Israel were also working to install two conveyor belts at Kerem Shalom and to widen the area for truck-transfer operations in the region. Once the belts were installed and the area widened, the crossing would be able to handle 150 truckloads of goods each day, a significant increase from the limit of 20 truckloads at the time.

While such projects for relief and development had been planned for the region and UN officials in Egypt were working to provide assistance to those people who are stranded at the border, Mr. Holmes stressed in the press release that the "importance of lifting current border restrictions cannot be over-emphasized."