Gaza ceasefire delay to lead to catastrophic loss of life: UNRWA

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has warned of catastrophic loss of life if the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip is not resumed, noting that the situation in the Strip is extremely worrying as the bombing of the Strip continues for the fourth consecutive night.UNRWA director of operations Sam Rose said supplies have not entered Gaza since the beginning of March, approximately 19 days, the longest period since the war on Gaza began on October 7, 2023.At the biweekly press conference of UN agencies in Geneva Friday, Rose said that, according to the Palestinian ministry of health, approximately 600 people have been killed, including approximately 200 women and children.The UN official added that if the ceasefire is not resumed, this means catastrophic loss of life, destruction of infrastructure and property, an increased risk of infectious diseases, and massive psychological trauma for the 1mn children and 2mn civilians living in Gaza.Rose estimated that 1mn people would be deprived of food rations in March.He added that six of the 25 bakeries supported by the World Food Programme (WFP) had already been forced to close.The Israeli entity resumed its aggression on the Gaza Strip at dawn last Tuesday, after a two-month pause under a ceasefire agreement that went into effect on January 19. However, the occupation violated the terms of the ceasefire throughout the two months, continuing its bombing of various areas in the Gaza Strip, causing casualties and injuries.It also refused to implement the humanitarian protocol, and tightened its stifling blockade on the Strip, which is experiencing an unprecedented humanitarian tragedy.The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor too warned of the catastrophic consequences of the Israeli entity's resumption of ground attacks in the Gaza Strip, coinciding with the imposition of forced displacement under the guise of evacuation orders and the continued heavy aerial bombardment.This is forcing hundreds of thousands to flee once again without any shelter, after the Israeli occupation forces destroyed the vast majority of homes, shelters, and buildings in the Strip.The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said in a statement Friday that its field team monitored the Israeli occupation forces' incursion into western Beit Lahia on Thursday evening, coinciding with airstrikes and intense artillery shelling during the night.This forced thousands of residents living in tents and dilapidated homes to be forcibly displaced, without any protection and under bombardment, to areas lacking the most basic necessities of life.It stressed that the Israeli occupation army had escalated its violations in other areas.Over the past few hours, it carried out ground incursions into two locations in Rafah, outside the buffer zone where its forces are stationed along the border with Egypt. It also continued to issue illegal evacuation orders to forcibly displace residents from towns east of Khan Yunis and the city of Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip.It said that thousands of residents of these areas were forced to flee and abandon their belongings due to the lack of means to transport their few belongings. He noted that they found themselves once again facing the suffering of forced displacement to a place of no shelter, after re-arranging dilapidated temporary accommodations near their destroyed homes over the 42 days following the ceasefire on January 19.Meawhile, France on Friday reiterated its rejection of any form of annexation in the occupied West Bank or the Gaza Strip.This came after the Israeli defence minister ordered the army to seize more territories in Gaza and threatened to annex it.In a statement, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot affirmed that his country opposes "any form of annexation," whether in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip.He added that France adheres to a clear vision for the future of the region, which is a solution based on two states living in peace alongside mutual recognition and security guarantees.Barrot stressed that this solution is the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region.