Highlights

  • The 72-hour cease-fire that entered into force on 5 August at 08:00 has held. However, no agreement has been reached to extend the ceasefire beyond 08:00 on 8 August.
  • The cumulative death toll of Palestinians is 1,866 including 429 children. The number of child deaths has surpassed the combined total of the previous two military operations, Cast Lead and Pillar of Defense. As rescue teams continue to retrieve bodies from the rubble, numbers of deaths are expected to rise.
  • Thousands of explosive remnants of war (UX05) pose a major threat to children, farmers, IDPs returning home and humanitarian workers.
  • The number of internally displaced persons in UNRWA shelters has reduced from a peak of 273,000 on 4 August to 166,527 on 7 August. Numbers will almost certainly increase again if hostilities resume.
  • Up to 65,000 people will require alternative accommodation with their homes having been completely destroyed or rendered uninhabitable.
  • Over 4,500 children were born during the month of July in Gaza. There are serious concerns in terms of postnatal care during this this period of severely limited power, access to medical services, hygiene, essential drugs, etc.
  • Severe water shortages continue as a result of the destruction of crucial WASH infrastructure. Drinking water, domestic water and access to hygiene materials is urgently needed to improve hygiene conditions.

Humanitarian Prioritie,

  • Extension of the ceasefire is essential to allow populations to return home, repair power and WASH infrastructure and to respond to the needs of the displaced population.
  • The humanitarian response needs to scale up. Urgent need for water, additional shelters, food, hygiene materials and NFIs.
  • Additional fuel supplies and generators are urgently required to ensure power can be supplied for essential health and WASH services.

Situation Overview

  • On the third and final day of the 72-hour ceasefire that followed over four weeks of hostilities and bloodshed in Gaza, the Palestinian death toll currently stands at 1,866 people including 429 children.
  • An estimated 10,770 families (64,650 individuals) are in need of emergency shelter assistance because their homes were totally destroyed or heavily damaged by either air strikes or tank shelling. In the medium term, they will also need cash assistance. In addition, 5,515 families (33,100 individuals) will require emergency shelter repair interventions in order to inhabit their homes. Most of those affected are women and children. As a result, children are even more exposed to the impact of the conflict and require protection in addition to humanitarian assistance. These families will require immediate and intensive support from the health, welfare and protection sectors to rebuild their lives.
  • The need for supplies of drinking and domestic water remains urgent as the hygiene and sanitation situation is critical. Lack of energy to operate facilities and limitations on access hinder the critical operations of WASH facilities,
  • including operations of water service providers as well as maintenance and repairs, with potential devastating consequences for the entire population of the Gaza Strip.
  • At least 373,000 children already require direct and specialised psychosocial support on the basis of families who have experienced death, injury or loss of home since hostilities began. Children are showing increasing symptoms of distress including fearfulness, bed wetting, clinging to parents and nightmares. There is also an urgent need to put preventative measures in place to protect women and children against violence and sexual abuse while they are displaced living in collective shelters or with host families.
  • Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli Security forces have occurred in the West Bank and East Jerusalem with violent protests having taken place in Hebron, Ramallah, Bethlehem and East Jerusalem in the past 72 hours.

Summary Analysis of Program response

UNICEF's emergency response in Gaza is focusing on supporting conflict-affected populations inside collective shelters and in host communities. In East Jerusalem and the West Bank, UNICEF's support will expand with a focus on families affected by recent violence and hostilities.

WASH

  • Through a joint WFP-UNICEF programme, vouchers are being distributed for water, hygiene products and food to vulnerable families who have lost their homes. 4,000 families (approximately 24,000 people) were reached through the voucher distribution. UNICEF provided additional funds to increase coverage to 10,000 households.
  • In partnership with Ma'an, UNICEF is supporting water tankering for domestic use, which will benefit 15,000 families in Gaza for one month.
  • UNICEF, in cooperation with PHG, is also supporting water tankering to provide drinking water for 20,000 people for one month.
  • Coastal Municipal Water Utility (CMWU) is carrying out critical repairs across Gaza with $350,000 emergency funding from UNICEF. Technical teams have restored the pipeline from the Rafah Waste Water Treatment Plant to the sea, and stopped the seeping of partially treated water into ground water wells. There are ongoing repairs to the damaged sanitation system in Beit Lahia.
  • Procurement of additional supplies for future distributions is on-going — including 3,000 hygiene kits for adults and 2,000 kits for babies, and 1,000 additional jerry cans.
  • Posters with messages on lice and scabies control, hand washing and proper water treatment are in printing, 1,000 posters on each topic.
  • 10 bladders are still awaiting approval by Israeli authorities for import into Gaza.

Health & Nutrition

  • UNICEF provided essential vaccines to continue routine immunization. Vaccinations are underway in Primary Health Centers run by the Ministry of Health and UNRWA. UNICEF is monitoring vaccination coverage through PRCS.
  • UNICEF coordinated provision of MCH services at PHC with MOH and UNRWA.
  • Essential drugs for children and medical consumables will arrive in the coming days.
  • Coordination with and technical advice to UNRWA and WFP on provision of food to displaced children aged 6 months to 2 years is on-going in collective shelters.
  • UNICEF is cooperating with WHO, MOH and UNRWA to raise awareness on the importance of breastfeeding and monitor breast milk substitute donation.
  • UNICEF, WHO, UNRWA and MOH coordinate the monitoring of communicable diseases and outbreaks.
  • Efforts are underway with local partners to ensure provision of post natal care especially at shelters.

Child Protection

  • UNICEF is supporting partners to verify all child fatalities. Daily reports are produced on killings, injuries and other grave violations against children including age and location analysis.
  • Emergency psychosocial teams (PCDCR) supported by UNICEF provided initial psychosocial support to 3,230 children across the Gaza Strip.
  • 42 staff and volunteers working in the government collective shelters have received a 3 hour briefing on core child protection principles to assist with their management of the shelters. The formation of child/adolescent friendly areas in shelters is also in process.
  • Since 4 August, child protection and psychosocial text messages were sent to 80,000 subscribers of Jawwal in Gaza. The messages include actions that caregiver should take to reduce the vulnerability of children to death and injury, to reduce psychosocial distress and to prevent and respond to child abuse. UNICEF and Jawwal provided a free phone number to call for advice and support (Sawa Helpline 121). However, due to the current lack of electricity in Gaza, this messaging will now be integrated into the activities of other partners rather than relying on the mobile phone network.
  • Since 13 July, Sawa Child Protection Helpline has been operating 24/7 to take thirty calls at one time. Between 4 and 7 August 2014, Sawa has been able to provide counselling to 150 callers from Gaza. 30% of callers were calling about fear of continuous violence.
  • UNICEF facilitated two Child Protection Working Group meetings to coordinate 30 partners, responding to the emergency in Gaza and the West Bank, including supporting injured children that are evacuated from Gaza and treated in hospitals in East Jerusalem.
  • With UNICEF support, 471 (228 girls) adolescents participated in recreational activities with Tamer, and over 741 adolescents per day participated in Ma'an programmes. 640 Children (50% girls) benefited from UNICEF recreational kits distributed by Tamer.

Humanitarian leadership and coordination

Emergency Operations Centres (EOC) have been established in Gaza and Ramallah. The Gaza EOC meets every other day to focus on the emergency response including monitoring visits to collective shelter and conflict affected communities. The EOC also acts as an advocacy platform to raise challenges related to humanitarian access. The EOC Secretariat in Ramallah supports Gaza to provide a coordinated approach to appeals by different Ministries. A more limited coordination group focuses only on IDP needs, in which UNICEF also participates. UNICEF leads the Child Protection Working Group and affiliated groups for mental health and psychosocial (MHPSS), and for monitoring and reporting of grave violations against children (MRM). These groups have been merged to maximise coordination of child protection responses during the emergency. UNICEF continues to lead the WASH cluster and co-lead the Education cluster with Save the Children, both in Gaza and at the national level, with dedicated staff capacity

Steve Catling, UNICEF Emergency Specialist, State of Palestine Tel: +972 54 778 7608 Email: scatling@unicef.org

Twitter: UNICEFpalestine, www.facebook.com/unicefstateofpalestine


Document symbol: UNICEFSitRpt_070814
Download Document Files: https://unispal.un.org/pdfs/UNICEFSitRpt_070814.pdf
Document Type: Situation Report, Update
Document Sources: United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF)
Subject: Armed conflict, Assistance, Ceasefire, Children, Gaza Strip, Health, Humanitarian relief, Incidents, Internally displaced persons, Living conditions, Population, Protection, Refugees and displaced persons, Security issues, Shelter, Water
Publication Date: 07/08/2014