The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
As death toll mounts in Middle East escalation, UN urges greater aid access
More than 220 people have now died in Gaza and the West Bank since violence erupted last week with Israel, where the toll has risen to 10 dead, the UN said on Tuesday, in a call for greater access to the Occupied Palestinian Territory and an end to hostilities.
“Up ’til noon yesterday, in the Gaza Strip Palestinian fatalities stood at 200 at that point. In the West Bank, Palestinian fatalities stood at 20,” said Jens Laerke from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
“There are combined in the West Bank and Gaza Strip more than 6,000 injured. In Israel, the casualty count tragically as well as of yesterday stood at 10 total deaths and nearly 800 injured…due to Palestinian rocket attacks from highly populated civilian neighbourhoods into civilian populations centres in Israel.”
Nearly 60,000 people have also had to leave or flee their homes in Gaza, the OCHA spokesperson told journalists, with 47,000 people now sheltering in UN Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) schools.
As of Monday, 132 buildings including 621 housing and commercial units have been destroyed in Gaza, according to the Ministry of Public Works and Housing. An additional 316 housing units have been severely damaged and rendered uninhabitable, Mr. Laerke noted.
Health care professionals and medical facilities have not been spared either, said Dr Margaret Harris from the World Health Organization (WHO).
“In the Gaza Strip, 19 health facilities have been damaged including destruction of the Hala Al-Shawa primary healthcare clinic. In the West Bank, 41 health workers have been injured and 21 health vehicles damaged. The severe damage to the roads and infrastructure makes access to many of the hospitals very, very difficult.”
The WHO spokesperson added that there was also a drastic lack of medicines and materials in the Gaza Strip, with “46 per cent of essential drugs and 33 per cent of essential medical supplies….at zero stock; that’s less than one month’s (supply), it basically means they don’t have that so half - almost half - of essential drugs.”
Concerns have continued to mount over the deteriorating situation for Gaza residents, where power is only available for six to eight hours per day, owing to damaged feeder lines and networks.
This has disrupted the provision of healthcare and other basic services, including water, hygiene, and sanitation.
Against this backdrop, OCHA welcomed the opening of the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza for essential humanitarian supplies nine days into the crisis.
The transit point in southern Gaza was closed eight days ago, along with the Erez crossing in the north of Gaza, OCHA said in a statement on Monday.
“We very much welcome the Israeli authorities’ opening of Kerem Shalom crossing for essential humanitarian supplies, nine days into the crisis. It is critical that the Erez crossing is also opened for the entry and exit of critical humanitarian staff.”
“In days to come, humanitarian access into and out of Gaza for staff and goods must be sustained and appropriate measures taken to ensure safe movements within Gaza,” said Mr. Laerke.
ends
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide shot, Palais des Nations flag alley, nations’ flags flying, a cloudy day.
- Wide shot, podium with speakers in a near-empty Room XIV in line with COVID-19 distancing measures, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Jens Laerke, spokesperson for OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs): “Up ’til noon yesterday, in the Gaza Strip Palestinian fatalities stood at 200 at that point. In the West Bank, Palestinian fatalities stood at 20. There are combined in the West Bank and Gaza Strip more than 6,000 injured. In Israel, the casualty count tragically as well as of yesterday stood at 10 total deaths and nearly 800 injured.”
- Medium close-up shot, screen on UNTV camera filming, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Margaret Harris, World Health Organization spokesperson: “In the Gaza Strip, 19 health facilities have been damaged including destruction of the Hala Al-Shawa primary healthcare clinic. In the West Bank, 41 health workers have been injured and 21 health vehicles damaged. The severe damage to the roads and infrastructure makes access to many of the hospitals very, very difficult.”
- Medium wide shot, raw of seat and attendee sitting to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Jens Laerke, spokesperson for OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs): “In Israel, 10 people have been killed as of yesterday and hundreds have been injured due to Palestinian rocket attacks from highly populated civilian neighbourhoods into civilian populations centres in Israel.”
- Wide shot, UNTV cameras and UN staff member typing on phone, Room XIV, Palais des Nations
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Jens Laerke, spokesperson for OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs): “We very much welcome the Israeli authorities’ opening of Kerem Shalom crossing for essential humanitarian supplies, nine days into the crisis. It is critical that the Erez crossing is also opened for the entry and exit of critical humanitarian staff.”
- Medium shot, spokesperson speaking on the podium, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Margaret Harris, World Health Organization spokesperson: “In the Gaza Strip, 46 per cent of essential drugs and 33 per cent of essential medical supplies are at zero stock; that’s less than one month’s (supply), but it basically means they don’t have that so half, almost half of essential drugs.”
- Medium wide shot, raw of seat and attendee sitting to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- Wide shot, podium with speakers to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- Medium shot, TV broadcasting and UN flag, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNIFIL
UN Security Council meets amid rising Israel-Hezbollah tensions in Lebanon.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the biweekly press briefing in Geneva, UN Human Rights spokesperson made the following remarks deplored the death in State custody of Brooklyn Rivera in Nicaragua.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Lebanon: Tyre hospital strikes leave patients without critical care – WHO
The UN health agency in Lebanon is verifying reports of strikes on a hospital in the southern city of Tyre on Monday, amid a concerning rise in attacks on healthcare in the country.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | WMO
El Niño confirmed, extreme weather events will be more intense, says WMO
The UN urged all countries on Tuesday to bolster early warning systems after confirming the onset of El Niño, warning that the Pacific Ocean-warming phenomenon will bring above-average temperatures “nearly everywhere” and fuel more extreme weather.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
‘A disease you get when you care for someone’: on the frontlines of the Ebola crisis with WHO
Two weeks into the latest Ebola outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) is estimating that there are 906 suspected cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including 223 suspected deaths.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on 29 May called for more robust measures by both states and tech companies to make online platforms safer for children, insisting on effective regulation, oversight and accountability. The digital world that connects children to learning, community and creativity also expose them to real risks, to their safety, to their privacy, and to their well-being. Online harms to kids’ safety, privacy, and well-being are not innate or inevitable.
See High Commissioner video: https://media.un.org/unifeed/en/asset/d357/d3579089
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: Life-saving medicines blocked as killing continues, disease gains ground
In Gaza, a dire humanitarian situation marked by continuing violence, rodent infestations and the spread of diseases is being made worse by blockages of essential medical supplies, UN agencies warned on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights spokesperson Shabia Mantoo, warned against the continuing trend of involuntary returns of Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers from host countries to Afghanistan, in violation of international human rights and refugee law, at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , OHCHR
Lebanon's first responders face high risks amid conflict, with 116 killed since March.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC Ebola outbreak: hundreds of suspected cases, no vaccine
A fast-spreading Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has health workers rushing to stop transmission while the roll out of any potential vaccine is months away, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
A UN Human Rights Office report released today covers 19 months of large-scale violations of international law including atrocity crimes, from October 2023 to the end of May 2025.