OCHA: Challenges persist amid efforts to scale up Gaza humanitarian response 

10 November 2025

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that one month into the ceasefire, efforts to ramp up aid in the Gaza Strip are still being held back by red tape, ongoing bans on key humanitarian partners, too few crossings and routes, and insecurity that persists despite the ceasefire.

Over the weekend, shelling and navy fire were reported in different parts of Gaza – though at much lower levels than before the ceasefire.

In some areas, the UN and its humanitarian partners still have to coordinate every movement in advance with the Israeli authorities. Yesterday, they made eight coordination attempts. Only two were fully facilitated, and four were impeded on the ground – including one that was delayed for 10 hours before the team finally received a green light to move.

Despite the challenges, the UN and its partners are seizing every opportunity to expand operations.

Yesterday, UN agencies kicked off the integrated catch-up campaign for routine immunization, nutrition and growth monitoring. UNICEF, UNRWA, and the World Health Organization (WHO) are carrying out the campaign with partners, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. The campaign focuses on children who missed earlier vaccination campaigns and aims to reach 44,000 children overall.

Today, WHO reported that Al Kheir Hospital in Khan Younis resumed operations last week after being forced out of service following attacks in February 2024. The agency supported its rehabilitation by restoring water, sanitation, power and structural systems, and providing essential medical equipment and medicines.

WHO also set up a new 20-bed nutrition stabilization centre at the hospital to treat children with acute and severe malnutrition. This brings the total across Gaza to seven such centres, with 70 inpatient beds in all.

Between Wednesday and Friday, humanitarian partners provided mental health and psychosocial support services to 1,500 children and 500 caregivers in different locations across the south. They received help with emotional expression and stress reduction, with messaging on the prevention of child abuse.

Over the weekend, humanitarian partners distributed nearly 40,000 winter clothing kits and pairs of shoes to children under 10. The UN and its partners are also distributing blankets to hospitals and other locations – nearly 50,000 blankets between Wednesday and Saturday alone.

Since the ceasefire, over the past month, humanitarian partners have been providing water trucking services through 2,000 locations across the Gaza Strip. They have also distributed 15,000 hygiene kits and restored some domestic water supply in Az Zaytoun neighbourhood of Gaza city by repairing a critical water line in the area.