After an initial truce of twelve hours that was declared on Saturday 26 July, the situation in Gaza remains highly volatile with continuous attacks in both directions. According to UN sources, over 1,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died since the beginning of the conflict. On the Israeli side, 46 people, three of them civilians, have lost their lives. More than 200,000 people in Gaza have sought refuge in UN buildings.
‘The situation here is rapidly changing,’ says CARE Country Director Rene Celaya from Jerusalem. ‘Our team and partner organisations in Gaza are working under extremely difficult circumstances to scale up the humanitarian response. At the same time, they are themselves affected by the conflict; many have lost neighbours, relatives and loved ones. We are very worried about the continuous stress the conflict puts on humanitarian aid workers who are now most needed to provide support to the civilian population.’
During the humanitarian pause on Saturday, with CARE’s support, our partner Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS) visited al-Shijaeya neighbourhood and the Alfalah school, a shelter for displaced people run by the United Nations (UNRWA). They provided screening and urgent medical services to 128 people, the majority of them children. On Sunday, PMRS visited the Hassan Albasri Governmental School in Gaza city and provided urgent medical services to 143 people, mainly women and children.
CARE has initiated the delivery of some medical supplies, but transport is still a challenge.
