Water production in Deir al Balah has reduced by 85%, polio outbreak in Gaza and slow authorization process for aid delivery, Highlights of the noon briefing by Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General – 26 August 2024

26 August 2024

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OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that the flurry of evacuation orders in August continues to worsen the humanitarian crisis, with new orders issued over the weekend.

This effectively upends a whole lifesaving humanitarian hub that was set up in Deir al Balah following the evacuation of the Rafah hub back in May, and it severely impacts our ability to deliver essential support and services.

Water production in Deir al Balah has reduced by 85 per cent due to loss of access to water sources in areas designated for evacuation in August.

And on polio, after the first confirmed case, our partners on the ground tell us at least 50,000 children born since the crisis began are highly unlikely to have received any immunizations due to the collapsed health system.

Yesterday [25 August], UNICEF confirmed that 1.2 million doses of Polio Vaccine Type 2 were brought into Gaza to immunize more than 640,000 children, together with WHO and UNRWA.

And for its part, the World Food Programme says that their operations are severely hampered by intensifying conflict, the limited number of border crossings and damaged roads.

In the last two months, WFP has managed to bring in only half of the 24,000 metric tons of food aid required for operations serving 1.1 million people in Gaza. WFP has also had to reduce the contents of food parcels.

WFP also warns that shell craters and debris is making driving slow and is challenging for truck drivers even in dry weather.

In two months, it’s feared that when rain comes and flooding is expected, most roads will become unusable.

WFP says that aid workers grapple daily with slow authorizations and frequent refusals when they ask for permission to move. Looting and public order problems are also frequent, especially when convoys wait for hours at holding points.

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