Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian Ministry of Health: Two were martyred in Israeli shelling that targeted a besieged house in the town of Qabatiya in Jenin
At least 68 dead in migrant shipwreck off Yemen: IOM
Trump: We want to feed the people in Gaza, we do not want them to starve.
US President Donald Trump: We will impose sanctions on Russia if it does not end the war on Ukraine.
Israeli media: Polls show that 52% oppose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while only 29% support him.
Israeli media: 32% of Americans still support "Israel's" war on Hamas, while 60% oppose it.
Israeli media: Core US support for "Israel" hits its lowest, while support for Palestine reaches its highest levels.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent reports martyrs, injuries in Israeli bombardment of home in Heker al-Jame area in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza.
Al-Quds Governorate: Today, the spatial division of Al-Aqsa Mosque began in a public and dangerous manner, and we warn of a religious war in the region
The Ministry of Health in Gaza: This brings the total number of victims of famine and malnutrition to 175, including 93 children

Everyday in Gaza is the worst day the Strip has seen: UNRWA

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News Websites
  • 28 Jun 2024 21:18
4 Min Read

An UNRWA spokesperson describes the dire living conditions Palestinians have to endure amid the war in Gaza.

Listen
  • x
  • Palestinian kids sort through trash at a landfill in Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza Strip, Thursday, June 20, 2024 (AP)
    Palestinian kids sort through trash at a landfill in Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza Strip, Thursday, June 20, 2024 (AP)

Palestinians in Gaza are forced to camp out in bombed buildings and large piles of garbage, a UNRWA spokesperson said, slamming the "unbearable" conditions civilians in the Strip have to endure. 

UNRWA's Louise Wateridge said the living conditions in the Gaza Strip, amid the war, were "extremely dire" and "unbearable", during a video call from central Gaza to reporters in Geneva. 

Wateridge had been stationed in Gaza but left the strip for a few weeks until Wednesday, 26 June. When she returned to the Strip, she stressed that the situation had drastically deteriorated over the period during which she was gone. 

"Today, it has to be the worst it's ever been. I don't doubt that tomorrow again will be the worst it's ever been," she said, adding that over the past nine months since the war began, the Gaza Strip has been destroyed. 

Wateridge went to Khan Younis to be surprised by what she described as "skeleton buildings" that Palestinians have taken as shelter, despite the absence of water, sanitation, and food. She highlighted that people have been forced to cover up the holes in the walls with sheets, and are reliving themselves wherever they can because there are no toilets left in sites where they are sheltering. 

On the delivery of humanitarian aid, the UNRWA official said the process was being ground to a halt due to the unavailability of fuel. She noted that relief organizations were unable to carry out humanitarian response missions because of the lack of fuel. 

Wateridge was staying in a guesthouse around 150 meters away from a mountain of waste [100,000 tonnes] surrounded by makeshift tents Palestinians set up. 

"With the temperatures rising, it's really adding misery to the living conditions," she said. 

Related News

UNRWA chief condemns Israeli efforts to sideline Gaza aid agency

UN chief warns of man-made famine in Gaza, urges unrestricted aid

'Nothing like I'd seen before'

Before the war, clean-up organizations would remove all waste from Gaza's camps and dump it in landfill sites. However, the initiation of such process appears to be more difficult because of the absence of fuel, meaning cleaning trucks cannot operate to kickstart the process, even if access was granted. 

Moreover, Wateridge said the aftermath of food insecurity has already manifested itself in the population. "When I see my colleagues, my friends here, they're visibly unrecognizable because having such unsustained access to food for so long, you start to age, you look unhealthy, your skin changes color," she grimly said. 

Patients in Gaza's remaining hospitals are succumbing to infections due to the scarcity of protective gear and soap, even if they manage to survive severe blast injuries.

Health workers are confronted with heart-wrenching decisions, such as abandoning efforts to save a seven-year-old boy with extensive burns because of a shortage of bandages and the likelihood that he wouldn't survive.

These are among the distressing scenes witnessed by US doctors and nurses who have recently returned from the besieged Palestinian territory. They are now dedicated to raising awareness about the crisis and pressuring "Israel" to permit more life-saving supplies into Gaza.

"Whether or not a ceasefire happens, we have to get humanitarian aid. And we have to get it in sufficient volumes to meet the demands," Adam Hamawy, a former US Army combat surgeon, said as quoted by AFP in an interview after a medical mission to Gaza's European Hospital last month.

"You could give all you want, you can donate," added the reconstructive plastic surgeon from New Jersey. "But if these borders don't open up to allow that aid to get in, then it's just useless."

For the past 30 years, Hamawy has volunteered in regions ravaged by war and natural disasters, including the siege of Sarajevo and the earthquake in Haiti.

"But the level of civilian casualties that I experienced was beyond anything I'd seen before," stressed the 54-year-old.

"Most of our patients were children under the age of 14," he emphasized. "This has nothing to do with your political views."

  • UNRWA
  • war on Gaza
  • Palestine
  • Humanitarian aid
  • Israeli aggression
  • Israel
War on Gaza

War on Gaza

Most Read

A rescued crew member from the ETERNITY C vessel in a video released by the Yemeni Armed Forces on July 28, 2025 (Yemeni Military Media)

Yemen Navy reveals fate of targeted Eternity C ship crew

  • Politics
  • 28 Jul 2025
An Israeli tank explodes following an ambush by al-Qassam Brigades in Gaza, Occupied Palestine, undated (Al-Qassam Military Media)

Al-Qassam strikes Israeli vehicles in Gaza, inflicts casualties

  • Politics
  • 30 Jul 2025
UAE lodges complaint against Israeli ambassador over 'misbehavior'

UAE lodges complaint against Israeli ambassador over 'misbehavior'

  • Politics
  • 1 Aug 2025
Protesters chant anti-Israeli slogans as they carry a banner that reads:" Freedom for Palestine, Alliance stop the war," during a demonstration in support of Palestinians in Gaza, outside the Israeli embassy, in Athens, Monday, June 9, 2025 (AP)

Athens mayor slams Israeli ambassador over Gaza war, graffiti claim

  • Politics
  • 3 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
A member of the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, takes part in a parade as he celebrates a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and the Israeli regime in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Sunday, January 19, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Al-Qassam: We’ll allow aid to Israeli captives if Gaza siege ends

Freed Lebanese freedom fighter Georges Abdallah during an interview on Al Mayadeen, which aired on Sunday, August 3, 2025 (Al Mayadeen screengrab)
Politics

Exclusive: Resistance key to building state, Georges Abdallah says

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres gives a statement about the situation in Gaza at UN headquarters, Friday, June 27, 2025 (AP)
Politics

UN warns Gaza faces water crisis, looming famine under Israeli siege

Israeli soldiers drive their armored personnel carrier along the Gaza Strip, in southern occupied Palestine, Wednesday, July 30, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Ex-Israeli general says Gaza starvation campaign isolated 'Israel'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS