New York, Aug. 18 (SANA) United Nations teams reached three Palestinian families still besieged in Qusra in the northern West Bank, amid a heavy presence of Israeli forces and settlers and the closure of roads leading to the village, the UN said Monday.
UN News quoted UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric as saying at his daily press briefing that a UNICEF team delivered water, food, medicines, hygiene supplies and recreational materials for children.
Dujarric said separate efforts by municipal workers to repair water and electricity networks damaged in recent weeks faced “serious obstacles” before eventually succeeding. He added that Israeli settlers attacked municipal workers, while Israeli forces detained several of them.
He also said several Palestinians were injured over the weekend, including some with gunshot wounds, in two incidents in Hebron Governorate involving Israeli settlers and Israeli forces.
UN warns of deteriorating situation in West Bank
UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Ramiz Alakbarov said recent developments in the West Bank underscore the urgent need to protect Palestinians, their homes and property, and ensure their access to essential services.
Alakbarov stressed that what is happening in Qusra “must not become the new normal.”
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said earlier that the three families remained besieged amid a heavy deployment of Israeli forces and settlers.
UN concern over Gaza humanitarian situation
In Gaza, Dujarric expressed UN concern over the continued impact of Israeli attacks on Palestinians, citing airstrikes, shelling, and ground and naval gunfire, most of which has been concentrated west of the “Yellow Line,” where around 2.1 million Palestinians are living in an area covering less than half of the Strip.
He said there were reports of Palestinians being injured in the attacks.
Severe shortage of shelter supplies
Dujarric warned that preparations for the coming rainy season in Gaza face funding shortages and other obstacles despite the urgent need to provide shelter supplies ahead of winter.
He said the UN and its partners had procured fewer than 30,000 tents, most of which remain stranded outside Gaza, while estimated needs range between 80,000 and 130,000 tents.
Meeting shelter needs also depends on allowing more durable shelter materials into Gaza, he said, noting that the UN remains unable to bring such supplies into the Strip.
The UN has so far secured less than 40 percent of the $4 billion required to provide humanitarian assistance in Gaza and the West Bank this year, Dujarric added.
According to the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Israeli forces and settlers carried out 2,256 attacks against Palestinians, their lands and property in July, including 1,458 by Israeli forces and 798 by settlers.
R.D/MF
