Today's top news: Lebanon, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ukraine, Cuba
#Occupied Palestinian Territory
OCHA is extremely alarmed by developments at Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the last functioning medical facilities for civilians who are being killed, injured and trapped en masse by the tightening Israeli siege in North Gaza Governorate.
This morning's reports of a military raid of the hospital are deeply concerning. As OCHA has stressed repeatedly, hospitals must be protected, both from use for military purposes and from attack, by any party to the conflict.
The World Health Organization (WHO) notes that since the reported raid, the agency has lost touch with the personnel at Kamal Adwan.
Yesterday, WHO – accompanied by OCHA, the UN Mine Action Service and partners – reached Kamal Adwan. The mission took 20 hours, with the team arriving back at 3:30 a.m. this morning.
They transferred 23 patients and more than two dozen caregivers from Kamal Adwan to Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza city.
The mission also delivered 10,000 litres of fuel, 180 units of blood, and enough trauma and surgical supplies for 1,600 interventions at Kamal Adwan. In addition, they supplied a range of medicines sufficient for about 5,000 patients, including antibiotics, infusion fluids, and anesthesia and ICU products.
The hospital is struggling to cope with an influx of patients. The team reported chaotic scenes from the emergency room, which was overflowing with people. Hundreds seeking shelter were crowded in every corner and corridor of the facility. Many displaced families had disabled or elderly relatives who were unable to walk.
Kamal Adwan must be protected. It is the only minimally functional hospital providing trauma care in all of North Gaza Governorate. Al Awda Hospital remains isolated due to hostilities in its vicinity.
While en route, the team reported long delays at checkpoints, as hostilities continued nearby, and said local UN staff were temporarily detained at a mobile checkpoint.
Near Kamal Adwan at another checkpoint, they witnessed thousands of women and children moving south. There were very few men and adolescent boys among them. Men were also seen being screened.
OCHA warns that the humanitarian crisis in North Gaza is rapidly worsening, with humanitarian essentials in extremely short supply. Moreover, the vast majority of attempts to deliver critical assistance continue to be denied or impeded. Today, Israeli authorities once again denied permission for the delivery of essential food and water supplies to Jabalya.
Meanwhile, OCHA – along with teams from the World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF – have been monitoring the humanitarian situation and response in Gaza city today. They are assessing the needs of newly displaced people, visiting sites, and providing clean water and health care, including at Al Shifa Hospital and community kitchens.
OCHA warns that intense hostilities persist across the Gaza Strip, including in the south. Overnight, an Israeli raid on multiple neighbourhoods of Khan Younis left scores of people dead and many more injured, including numerous women and children. During the operation, families sought safety in An Nasser Hospital, the Maan UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) school, and the Al Mawasi area, with most returning home after Israeli forces withdrew.
Reports indicate widespread damage to homes, leaving people in urgent need of tents, tarps to cover damaged shelters, hot meals, and clean water.
Meanwhile in the West Bank, OCHA reports that during this month alone, more than 100 incidents linked to Israeli settlers have led to Palestinian casualties and property damage. In October overall, there were some 180 settler-related incidents in almost 90 Palestinian communities across the West Bank, with more than half of these cases involving the olive harvest season.
OCHA also reports that an 11th Palestinian community has now been fully displaced in the West Bank, amid attacks by Israeli settlers and access restrictions. This is after the eight families remaining in the Juret Al Khiel community in Hebron Governorate were displaced.
#Lebanon
OCHA warns that civilians continue to bear the brunt of the escalating violence, with airstrikes intensifying across southern and eastern parts of Lebanon yesterday.
The Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon, Imran Riza, said he was alarmed by the tragic killing of three journalists in Hasbaya, in Nabatieh Governorate, yesterday, with three others reportedly injured.
In a social media post, Riza said the attack highlights the risks that journalists face in conflict zones. He stressed that civilians, including journalists, must be protected.
Amid the ongoing fighting, the UN and partners in Lebanon are stepping up our efforts to reach people in need around the country.
Given the catastrophic humanitarian situation, we are especially grateful for the generous announcements of support by Member States participating at the conference in Paris yesterday. OCHA appeals for that funding to be disbursed without delay, to enable the humanitarian community in Lebanon to scale up and sustain the response.
Today, a humanitarian convoy – comprised of UN agencies and NGOs, and supported by OCHA – delivered critical aid to Nabatieh Governorate, including ready-to-eat meals, hygiene kits and solar lamps.
In the south, UNICEF has provided essential supplies to support emergency repairs to water facilities damaged by the ongoing bombardment, which has affected more than 360,000 people. These supplies include 95 pumps, 18 tons of chlorine gas and 24 kilometres of pipes to improve access to safe water.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization is supporting Lebanese health authorities in vaccinating displaced children – especially in collective shelters – against polio and measles, mumps and rubella.
The International Organization for Migration reports that more than 833,000 people have been displaced inside Lebanon. As of Wednesday, almost 192,000 of those displaced were living in nearly 1,100 collective shelters – 84 per cent of which are at full capacity.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has identified more than 53,400 refugees who have been displaced inside Lebanon since last October – more than 80 per cent of whom have been forced to flee over the last month alone. The vast majority are Syrian refugees.
Since 23 September, UNHCR says about 440,000 people have fled from Lebanon into Syria, based on estimates from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent. UNHCR is also aware of more than 19,000 Lebanese arrivals in Iraq since the escalation of hostilities, based on information from Government authorities and partners.
#Ukraine
OCHA reports that as fighting continues across Ukraine, the UN and humanitarian partners are working to reach civilians in front-line regions with life-saving assistance.
Today, OCHA led an inter-agency convoy to one of the affected communities in the Mykolaiv Region, in southern Ukraine. They provided seven tons of aid, including food, mattresses, diapers, and hygiene and dignity kits.
As in other front-line areas of Ukraine, communities in Mykolaiv have seen frequent disruptions to the delivery of vital supplies and essential services, as the hostilities continue.
In the regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson, authorities and aid workers say attacks today and yesterday caused more than 20 civilian casualties and significant damage to civilian infrastructure. On Wednesday in the Donetsk Region, strikes damaged the office of a national humanitarian organization in the town of Kurakhove. Fortunately, no staff were injured.
#Cuba
Authorities say Hurricane Oscar has killed seven people in Cuba, while tens of thousands are still without communication.
The UN Resident Coordinator, Francisco Pichon, is in contact with the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Investment and Civil Defense on mobilizing UN assistance.
OCHA has deployed a small team from Panama to provide coordination support. WFP has pre-positioned food in the country to immediately assist 275,000 people for 60 days. UNICEF supplies in Cuba will go towards supporting more than 40,000 people with water, hygiene, shelter and education, while the UN Development Programme has pre-positioned 4,000 roof tarpaulins.
The UN in Cuba is preparing a more comprehensive plan to provide both immediate and recovery support to those most affected.