GENEVA/BEIRUT: In its updated semi-annual report, the UN said on Wednesday that $4.07 billion is needed for Gaza and the West Bank next year, which is only a part of the region’s total needs.
Table of Contents
The task will be to help “the population of the Gaza Strip, which stands at approximately 2.1 million people as well as 900,000 people in the West Bank,” OCHA, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, has said in its call for funding.
It said that the actual needs total “at least $6.6 billion” but implied that restraints imposed by Israel on aid delivery make it improbable to increase the scale of operation to this level.
“To effectively perform the full scale of what is required in these situations, Israel needs to make effective and immediate steps to guarantee the provision of the baseline civilian requirements,” the appeal continued.
Thus, humanitarian actors expect the latter to be barely achievable in 2025 because of severe restrictions… and constantly growing challenges to their operation – the heightening and coordination of anti-UN discourse which is positioned as direct rhetorical attacks stimulating the degradation of the legitimacy of humanitarian activity.
OCHA stated that If all the involved parties in the conflict respected international law, humanitarian aid worth $6.6 billion could be delivered.
However, “assuming humanitarian actors will continue to face a constrained operating environment, the 2025 OPT Flash Appeal Village calls for some $4 billion of this amount”, it said.
That, it said, meant that aid would be provided to three million people not three point three million people in need.
Noting that ‘The killing and destruction that took place in the Gaza Strip are unprecedented in recent history ’ OCHA stated ‘Without sustainable action to address the violence, humanitarian requirements will keep increasing’.
It called inter alia for safe and sustained access for all persons in need across the OPT and humanitarian access at scale into Gaza.
“Apart from peace, meaningful actions towards facilitating humanitarian access will call for significant shifts in the operating environment,” it said.
In the meantime, Lebanon’s health ministry claimed that Israeli air raids claimed six lives in the south on Wednesday, as a shaky truce between Israel and Hezbollah ended two months of fierce fighting. Lebanon’s army then stated that it sent soldiers to guard Khiam, a strategic town only five kilometers, or three miles, from the border that was one of the flashpoints of the Israel-Iranian-back Hezbollah group fight.
Most of its inhabitants are Druze who have clashed with al-Assad in the past, and Ainata has come under attack from Israeli enemy drones on Saturday as one person was killed and another burned, according to the health ministry.
“An Israeli strike on the town of Bint Jbeil killed three people,” while a third “on Beit Lif killed one person.”
Hezbollah began the cross-border exchanges in favor of its Palestinian ally Hamas after an attack by the latter on southern Israel on October 7, 2023 See Blue, ‘Intensity of fighting increases in south Lebanon as Israel tries to capture Hezbollah’s support’, Daily Star, Beirut, 23 September 2006, p. 3.
On November 27 the cease-fire was declared. Said claims have been leveled on each occasion by one side against the other.
According to the deal, the Lebanese armies are supposed to enter into the south along with United Nations peacekeepers once the Israeli armies start pulling out over one month or sixty days to be precise.
Hezbollah has to pull back its troops 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Litani River and destroy all its military facilities in the south.
FAQs
What is the purpose of the appeal?
The funds aim to provide food, medical care, shelter, and clean water to communities in Gaza and the West Bank, with a significant portion addressing famine risks in Gaza. Over two-thirds of Gaza’s population are registered refugees, and the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) plays a central role in providing these services.
What are the most critical needs?
Key priorities include tackling acute hunger, restoring access to clean water, and maintaining emergency healthcare. Gaza faces severe food insecurity, with more than half the population at risk of famine. Clean water availability is critically low, and healthcare facilities are heavily damaged, leaving urgent gaps in trauma care and other medical services.
How will the funds be used?
The appeal will cover immediate humanitarian needs over a nine-month period and includes provisions for emergency food distribution, healthcare supplies, and support for displaced populations. The funding request reflects what aid organizations believe is feasible given the current security and operational constraints.