Gaza Humanitarian Response Update | 20 July - 2 August 2025

Response

• As of 4 August, 259,000 meals were prepared and delivered by 16 partners through 76 kitchens – 98,000 meals in northern Gaza and 161,000 meals in central and southern Gaza. Compared with over one million meals per day that were prepared in community kitchens operated by partners in April, this represents a 74 per cent reduction.
• Since 20 July, the main food assistance partners have resumed regular cargo collection from Zikim crossing in northern Gaza and Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Gaza. Between 20 July and 3 August, at least 12,000 metric tons (MT) of food items procured through the UN-coordinated aid mechanism, including wheat flour, food parcels and bulk food items for community kitchens, have been brought into Gaza – according to the UN2720 Monitoring and Tracking Dashboard – but more than 90 per cent were offloaded by hungry crowds or looted by armed gangs along aid convoy routes. Casualties among people approaching aid convoys near checkpoints staffed by Israeli forces also continue to be reported. According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 27 May and 4 August, the casualty toll among people trying to reach food supplies at militarized distribution sites or along humanitarian aid convoy routes increased to 1,516 fatalities and more than 10,000 injuries.
• FSS partners continue to disseminate messages through community leaders, influencers and journalists to emphasize the importance of allowing truck access to warehouses to enable safe and secure aid deliveries that can reach all people in need, including vulnerable groups such as older persons, women, and persons with disability or illness. Additionally, the sector continues to advocate for no armed presence near humanitarian convoy routes or civilian aid distribution points.
• On 29 July, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Global Initiative issued an alert warning that the worst-case scenario of Famine is currently playing out in Gaza Strip. Based on the latest evidence available as of 25 July, the IPC alert highlights mounting evidence of widespread starvation, malnutrition, disease, mass displacement, severely restricted humanitarian access, and the collapse of essential services, including health care, contributing to an increase in hunger-related deaths. The latest data indicate that Famine thresholds have been reached for food consumption in most of the Gaza Strip and for acute malnutrition in Gaza city:
  • Food consumption across the Gaza Strip has reached its lowest level since the onset of the conflict. The situation has worsened dramatically, with 81 per cent of households reporting poor food consumption (up from 33 per cent in April) and 24 per cent of households are experiencing very severe hunger in July compared with four per cent in April, crossing the Famine threshold for food consumption. Nearly nine out of ten households resorted to extremely severe coping mechanisms to feed themselves, such as taking significant safety risks to obtain food, and scavenging from the garbage.
  • Severe food poverty among children (consumption of two or fewer food groups by infants and young children) deteriorated from 58.3 per cent in February to 94 per cent in June. Moreover, acute malnutrition rates doubled in Khan Younis and increased by 70 per cent in Deir al Balah between May and July and, in Gaza city, the Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) rate soared from 4.4 per cent in May to an alarming 16.5 per cent in the first half of July, thereby reaching the Famine threshold for acute malnutrition. The situation in North Gaza governorate, which faces similar challenges, cannot be verified due to the lack of data.
• According to IPC protocols, an Alert does not classify areas or provide population estimates and does not constitute a Famine classification. Prompted by this alert, and using the most recent information and data available, a new IPC analysis took place between 30 July and 4 August, with findings expected to be released soon.

Challenges

• While FSS partners have enough food in the region or en route to feed the entire Gaza population of 2.1 million people for at least three months, access constraints have meant that at least 14,000 MT of food aid procured through the UN-coordinated aid mechanism were collected from crossings in the month of July – according to the UN2720 Monitoring and Tracking Dashboard – most of which was offloaded by hungry crowds or looted by armed gangs before reaching warehouses. More than 62,000 MT is required each month to cover basic humanitarian food assistance needs.
• As humanitarian food assistance, which serves as the main source of food for households in the Gaza Strip, continues to dwindle, people have run out of ways to cope, food systems have collapsed, and the likelihood of famine occurring is imminent and substantial. Hunger and malnutrition have devastating impacts, including a heightened risk of illness and death. They weaken the immune system, especially among women, children, the elderly and people with disabilities or chronic diseases, and lead to risks of excess morbidity and mortality. The impact of food scarcity on pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBW) is especially severe as their babies are more likely to be born with health complications, and it becomes harder for mothers to breastfeed, putting children at increased risk of infectious diseases. To avert this looming catastrophic situation, all parties to the conflict and those with influence on their conduct must take immediate action to facilitate the at-scale resumption of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip and ensure that there is a secure and enabling environment for aid delivery. The previous IPC analyses for Gaza show that food security and malnutrition can deteriorate and also recover swiftly in response to the amount of food supplies that are permitted to enter and be distributed across the Gaza Strip.

Response

• Cluster partners continue to carry out malnutrition screenings across the Gaza Strip, but individual screening data remains limited in North Gaza and Rafah due to access constraints and limited operational presence. Since March, when 3,264 acute malnutrition cases were identified, figures show a steady monthly increase in the number of identified acute malnutrition cases, which are especially catastrophic in Gaza city. Based on hitherto available data for the monthly of July, including data from 12 out of 24 partners for the second half of July, out of 117,366 children between six and 59 months screened in July, 9,205 children were identified to be suffering from acute malnutrition, the highest monthly figure recorded to date (the highest figure recorded in 2024 was 5,436 cases in December 2024). These comprise 1,732 children who suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), of whom 40 were hospitalized at stabilization centres. Overall, identified cases included: 4,280 children in Gaza city (including 725 SAM cases); 1,470 in Khan Younis (including 369 SAM cases); 3,407 in Deir al Balah (including 675 SAM cases); 36 in Rafah; and 52 in North Gaza. In June and July, 18 per cent of all acutely malnourished children were of severe form (SAM), compared with 12 per cent of children between March and May 2025.
• In July, partners were only able to reach three per cent (8,169 out of 290,000) of children under five who require feeding and micronutrient supplements due to the limited entry into Gaza of lipid-based nutrient supplements - medium quantity (LNS - MQ). Compared with the average of about 76,000 children reached per month between April and June (26 per cent of the target population), July figures reflect a collapse in the malnutrition prevention programme. Additionally, the distribution of other prevention supplies, such as small-quantity LNS with less calories (LNS – SQ) or high energy biscuits, has dropped; while data remains incomplete, partners reached 37,320 children with LNS – SQ in July compared with 164,000 in June, when partners increased their distributions to try to counteract the impact of food deprivation, and 80,000 in May. The number of children reached with complementary food also declined; compared with June when 28,400 children were reached, about 10,000 children benefited from complementary food in July, including less than 1,500 during the second half of July. Moreover, among 150,000 PBW who require feeding and micronutrient supplements, partners were only able to provide LNS – MQ to less than three per cent (3,658) in July, compared with 32,200 in June (21 per cent).

Challenges

• Supply shortages are among the main challenges to sustaining nutrition programmes. As of 2 August, blanket supplementary feeding programme supplies have been completely depleted inside Gaza, and current insecurity does not allow for the collection of prevention supplies from crossings and their distribution across Gaza to the scale that would be needed to cover all the children under five and PBW.
• Recurrent displacement orders continue to disrupt sustained and continuous nutrition service delivery and result in fluctuating functionality of health facilities and nutrition sites, which are often forced to suspend or shut down services. Children and PBW are then forced to walk long distances to reach nutrition services elsewhere. Furthermore, while hospitals have not been required to evacuate, services therein have been rendered inaccessible as people become displaced from areas placed under displacement orders.

Response

• As of 3 August, 30 WASH Cluster partners delivered approximately 13,966 cubic metres of drinking water per day through 1,158 water collection points across the Gaza Strip. This is below the late June daily average of 17,045 cubic metres distributed across 1,357 water collection points. Despite ongoing operational and security challenges, this coordinated response remains vital to ensuring continued access to safe drinking water.
• Since 1 August, several thousand hygiene kits have successfully entered Gaza for the first time since 2 March, which have been looted or offloaded by people in urgent need of basic necessities, reflecting the deep desperation among people awaiting humanitarian assistance.
• One WASH partner has successfully established a new public water well in Deir al Balah, which is now supplying an additional 60 cubic metres per hour, significantly increasing access to safe water in the area. The well could serve up to 53,000 people. However, due to the lack of pipes to repair the largely dilapidated network and limited fuel availability, the increase in water supply can serve about 16,000 people.
• Solid waste management operations, including waste collection, continue across the Gaza Strip, helping to mitigate public health risks albeit on a limited scale. Currently, seven temporary dumping sites are operational and accessible.

Challenges

• Frequent damage to water supply systems and ongoing fuel shortages continue to hinder the availability of water at the household level. As a result, access to water services remains a significant challenge, with 96 per cent of households surveyed between 7 and 12 July reporting water insecurity (up from 93 per cent in June) and 90 per cent of key informants reporting worsened drinking water availability, according to the Cluster’s latest monthly Light-Touch Monitoring (LTM) survey.
• Insecurity along convoy routes, driven by the absence of public order and safety and the presence of large crowds, continues to disrupt the delivery of supplies. Essential items, such as hygiene kits, have been offloaded by people in need of basic supplies or looted by armed groups.
• Fuel supplies remain limited; in July, only 41 per cent of the 2.10 million litres needed to maintain all emergency WASH services were available to partners, significantly constraining the scale and continuity of operations. For example, production from groundwater wells has dropped by 70 per cent compared with the ceasefire period when fuel was more readily available.
• The majority of WASH facilities inside Gaza remain largely inaccessible; as of 1 August, 81 per cent of public WASH facilities and assets (567 out of 696) are within the Israeli-militarized zone or under displacement orders since 18 March. These include water wells, desalination plants, reservoirs, stormwater basins, wastewater pumping stations, treatment plants, dumpsites, and both official landfills.
• Continued supply shortages of reverse osmosis membranes and spare parts – including generators, pipes, fittings, and other essential components – are severely hindering partners’ ability to repair and maintain critical WASH infrastructure.

Response

• The Global Protection Cluster released an alert in response to the rapid deterioration in the protection environment in the Gaza Strip that further jeopardizes the possibility of survival, including the expansion of the ground offensive in Deir al Balah city, strikes all over the Gaza Strip, and widespread starvation. The OPT Protection Cluster also released a Call To Action directed to Member States, warning that airdrops pose a risk of harm to civilians, are an inadequate and ineffective alternative to principled and coordinated humanitarian delivery, and risk deflecting from legal obligations of Israel to facilitate meaningful humanitarian access.
• Partners carried out individual and group psychological sessions, reaching over 1,500 people during the reporting period through a combination of direct service delivery, mobile outreach, and remote modalities.
• Mine Action – During the reporting period, Mine Action (MA) partners only carried out activities critical to programing. To support humanitarian efforts and reduce safety risks in affected communities, MA partners participated in 21 inter-agency missions and conducted 36 explosive hazard assessments during the reporting period, offering technical expertise to ensure safer humanitarian operations. Furthermore, MA partners conducted 493 Explosive Ordnance Risk Education – Conflict Preparedness and Protection (EORE – CPP) sessions, reaching 10,143 people (4,794 women, 3,628 men, 911 girls, and 810 boys) in Gaza, Deir al Balah, and Khan Younis governorates. Since October 2023, 112 EO-related incidents have been documented, resulting in 17 fatalities and 130 injuries, of whom 73 (both killed and injured) were children.
• Gender-based violence (GBV)
  • GBV partners reached 5,112 women and girls with essential GBV services through 17 Women and Girls Safe Spaces (WGSSs), which offered multisectoral support including recreational activities, peer-to-peer support, and awareness sessions on GBV, sexual and reproductive health (SRH), and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA).
  • About 3,000 women received individual psychosocial counseling, and 312 women at risk, including GBV survivors, were provided with emergency cash assistance to enhance their safety and ability to meet basic needs.
  • Legal support services reached 80 women across various governorates, offering consultations on family law, custody, inheritance, and civil documentation.
  • Community awareness efforts reached approximately 8,792 people (including 3,851 men and 4,941 women) through sessions aimed at increasing knowledge on GBV types, available services, survivor rights, and referral pathways.
  • To further strengthen the health sector response, the first round of training sessions on the Clinical Management of Rape (CMR) was conducted for 20 health providers’ focal points, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Ministry of Health.
  • On 28 July, an inter-agency assessment in Ard Abu Saleem, Al Fajir, and Atfaluna displacement sites revealed a complete absence of psychosocial support services or safe spaces for women and girls, with inadequate WASH facilities and a lack of hygiene supplies exacerbating protection risks. In response, GBV Area of Responsibility (AoR) partners scaled up mobile service delivery, deploying teams to provide psychosocial support, Psychological First Aid (PFA), and case management in displacement sites. Survivors were referred to functioning WGSSs in safer areas for continued care where appropriate.
  • Efforts to expand adolescent and youth outreach were also implemented. UNFPA, through one partner, established two specialized girls’ tents in northern Gaza – one focused on GBV and reproductive health awareness, and the other on psychosocial support and resilience – reaching 100 female participants. A total of three girls’ tents delivered 12 sessions of comprehensive GBV and sexuality education (CSE), each lasting 40 minutes.
• Housing, Land and Property – The Housing, Land and Property Technical Working Group (HLP TWG) convened a meeting with partners and stakeholders on 23 July to discuss the ongoing HLP challenges in Gaza and explore potential areas of support and collaboration under the HLP TWG. The HLP TWG is coordinating with the Shelter and Site Management clusters to align priorities and ensure a joint response to HLP issues. The unified HLP assessment tool has been shared in both Arabic and English via the HLP TWG ReliefWeb page.
• Child Protection – Child protection partners are operating across Gaza, delivering essential services in Gaza City, Khan Younis, Deir al Balah, and major displacement camps. Partners have resumed critical case management and mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS) service delivery in Deir al-Balah after the 20 July order was rescinded. Field-level interventions including child protection service points, mobile teams, and community-based activities are gradually restarting, though access and resource constraints persist.
  • During the reporting period, between 20 July and 1 August, partners reached nearly 6,500 children with MHPSS services. On average, more than 540 children and caregivers received group or individual psychosocial support each day. Key activities included specialized one-on-one psychological counselling for over 100 children each day in Gaza city, Khan Younis, and Deir al Balah. Group counselling sessions reached 120 to 140 mothers and children daily, providing a safe environment for collective healing and resilience, particularly in Gaza city and Khan Younis. Recreational activities engaged more than 310 children per day across Gaza city, Khan Younis, Deir al Balah, and displacement camps. In addition, children with disabilities and their caregivers benefited from structured, inclusive psychosocial support.
  • UNICEF and child protection partners in close collaboration with MOH are deploying dedicated child protection social work teams to Gaza’s four main paediatric trauma hospitals to assess and register every injured child, provide on-site PFA and counselling, and activate child protection case management referrals before discharge, aiming to close the current 95 per cent referral gap. During the reporting period, 21 additional unaccompanied and separated children were identified and placed in alternative care across two centres while family-based options are pursued.
  • Case management services continue for separated and unaccompanied children, children without parental care, children with disabilities, child survivors of violence including gender-based violence, children with significant MHPSS needs, children with acute conflict-related injuries and disabilities (both in and out of hospital), and children at high risk of harm or death. In July, more than 500 children received individual one-on-one case management services, while 96 children were reunified with their families and caregivers.
  • On 28 July, an inter-cluster assessment mission at displacement sites in Deir al Balah revealed severe child protection concerns, with a distressing rise in child neglect, forced child begging, and increased exposure to harm.
  • On 30 July, the Child Protection AoR recently held a Disability Inclusion Orientation for 63 partners, focusing on identifying children with functional disabilities. The session aimed to strengthen partners’ capacity to deliver inclusive, disability-sensitive child protection services.

Challenges

• Repeated and prolonged displacement continues to affect tens of thousands of Palestinians, including protection staff and service providers who are themselves now living within displacement zones, mainly in densely populated and underserved locations. The impact on staff safety and well-being is particularly acute, with reports of displacement, injury, and personal property loss.
• GBV partners continue to adapt by leveraging mobile safe spaces, hotlines, and PFA to reach affected people. However, access constraints, insufficient fuel, and constant displacement continue to threaten the continuity of services and the safety of survivors and staff alike. For example, after the 20 July displacement order in Deir al Balah was rescinded, four GBV partners who had to temporarily suspend operations have resumed services. One UNFPA-supported safe shelter in the area, which was first relocated to Gaza city, has now moved to Khan Younis due to insecurity. Some survivors were relocated, while others returned to unsafe conditions.
• Access constraints and severe fuel shortages are severely limiting the mobility of child protection case workers and psychosocial support (PSS) facilitators, restricting their ability to reach children and families in need. As a result, many cases remain unmonitored and unreported, placing children in even more life-threatening situations.
• Food insecurity is affecting everyone in Gaza; staff exhaustion and hunger are acute, with frontline staff and service providers reporting being dizzy from not eating enough, directly impacting their capacity to provide quality care. Both staff and community members are experiencing rising psychological distress, and there are urgent requests for additional support for service providers.
• Essential child-focused supplies, including MHPSS kits, tents for group activities, and assistive devices, are not available in the Gaza Strip, severely limiting the scope and quality of child protection activities.

Response

• Preparedness work is ongoing on targeting and prioritization frameworks for different potential scenarios to enable rapid response once the entry of shelter materials is approved.
• The Shelter Cluster developed a reporting tool and an inter-sectoral referral tool with the Protection Cluster to support vulnerable cases. Moreover, coordination is ongoing with the Site Management Cluster (SMC) to identify displacement sites in Gaza city where partners will conduct assessments in preparation for immediate distributions once shelter materials are allowed to enter.
• Distribution of clothing vouchers by cluster partners is ongoing, reaching thus far 5,550 newly displaced families in Gaza city, out of the planned target of 7,200 families. This has enabled families to purchase adult and children's clothing from local markets.
• The Shelter Cluster has published a lessons learned document on the winter clothing distribution response in Gaza, summarizing key challenges, operational insights, and recommendations to inform future programming.

Challenges

• There are no shelter items available in stock across the Gaza Strip, preventing partners from addressing needs and growing requests for assistance. Since 2 March, no shelter materials or non-food items have been allowed to enter Gaza through the crossing points, leaving partners with no means to replenish depleted stocks. The few shelter materials that are available on the local market are prohibitively expensive and limited in quantity, placing them out of reach for most families. At the same time, overcrowded displacement sites and restricted physical access to affected areas have further hindered the ability of shelter cluster partners to deliver aid.
• The situation is compounded by ongoing airstrikes, displacement orders, and growing insecurity, which have not only displaced families repeatedly but have also forced many humanitarian workers to relocate, reducing operational capacity at a time of rising needs.
• Several factors are driving a rapid expansion of the gap in coverage of shelter needs, including: the short lifespan of previously distributed shelter items (3-6 months); growing displacement, the repeated disassembly and reassembly of shelters, and the associated loss or abandonment of shelter items; overcrowding in already fragile shelters; and harsh weather conditions and humidity that accelerate the deterioration of shelter materials. According to the most recent assessment carried out by the Shelter Cluster on 7 July, an estimated 1.35 million people require emergency shelter items and 1.4 million need essential household items. This is compared with 1.3 million estimated to require emergency shelter items and 1.3 million who needed essential household items in the last week of June (see dashboard).

Response

• Education Cluster partners have been carrying out summer educational and recreational activities at temporary learning spaces (TLS) to mitigate the psychological and emotional impact of ongoing hostilities, bombardment and displacement on children. At present, 31 partners are operating 299 out of 626 TLS, serving 113,000 children across the Gaza Strip, except Rafah; these include eight TLS in North Gaza governorate, 106 in Gaza, 94 in Deir al Balah and 91 in Khan Younis. In contexts of extreme deprivation, partners emphasize that the presence of a supportive teacher – even amid emotional hardship – offers children a vital source of support.
• The Education Cluster has identified 77 TLS operated by 16 partners for holding the second phase of the General Secondary Education Examinations (Tawjihi) for the 2023-2024 cohort, with registration scheduled to take place from 2 to 5 August via the Ministry of Education’s (MoE’s) online platform. According to MoE, 1,613 out of 1,719 students who took the exams during the first phase in July passed.
• A Cluster partner operating a specialized workshop in Gaza city continues to repair and maintain assistive devices to support children with disabilities.

Challenges

• Strikes on educational infrastructure continue to cause damage and loss of life and instill fear among children, parents, and teachers, further discouraging participation in educational activities. At least nine strikes were documented during the reporting period, including four in Deir al Balah and five in Gaza city, of which eight were Israeli airstrikes and one involved Israeli tank shelling. According to the latest satellite-based damage assessment, which relies on imagery collected on 8 July, 97 per cent of education facilities in Gaza have sustained some level of damage, with 91 per cent requiring major rehabilitation or complete reconstruction to become functional again.
• The 20 July displacement order issued by Israeli authorities forced the temporary closure of 15 TLS serving approximately 6,325 learners supposed by 143 teachers in Deir al Balah. A ground Israeli military operation subsequently led to the destruction of two TLS that served nearly 2,000 learners and one TLS was later used as a shelter for IDPs. After Israeli authorities rescinded the 20 July order, partners have not been able to re-establish TLS in the area due to the lack of tents and supplies.
• Restrictions by Israeli authorities continue to limit the entry of educational supplies into Gaza, undermining the scale and quality of interventions. Supplies equivalent to 100 truckloads that have been procured have been stranded in Jordan and Egypt and about 6,000 tablets for administering the Tawjihi exams in Gaza remain in the West Bank. Students who took the Tawjihi exams during the first phase used personal or borrowed devices.
• Severe fuel shortages continue to hinder the mobility of partners running learning programmes, impede the organization of group sessions that require electricity and the printing of learning materials, and disrupt children’s access to e-learning platforms that require power and internet.
• Hostilities continue to claim the lives of students and teachers. According to the MoE, as of 29 July*, 16,300 students and 721 education personnel have been killed, while 24,320 students and 3,070 personnel have sustained injuries, many of them life-altering amid serious challenges in accessing the care and support they need.
• Less than 10 per cent of the Education Cluster’s requirements under the 2025 Flash Appeal have been met, further limiting partners’ response capacity. One of the most impacted areas of intervention is the expansion of TLS amid a lack of tents and inflated black-market prices of salvageable steel and other essential materials. Additionally, most teachers continue to work on a voluntary basis, which negatively affects their sustained engagement.

Response

• The Logistics Cluster facilitated the collection of cargo on behalf of one partner from Erez West (Zikim) crossing between 25 July and 2 August, and on 28 July from Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing. Prior to this period and since 27 June, the Cluster was unable to carry out this role due to operational challenges related to extreme insecurity inside Gaza.
• For a week between 27 July and 3 August, Israeli authorities exempted UN agencies from the newly imposed customs clearance for cargo moving through the Egypt corridor. International non-governmental organizations (INGOs) could also be granted customs exemptions for health items only, but on a case-by-case basis. While the customs exemption mechanism for cargo transported from Egypt has not been officially extended, it appears to be still in place.
• During the reporting period, the Logistics Cluster facilitated access to five convoys comprising 65 trucks from Jordan to Gaza crossings; these included three Government-to-Government (G2G) convoys comprising 55 trucks and two Back-to Back (B2B) convoys comprising 10 trucks. The Logistics Cluster service facilitation of B2B convoys was extended at no-cost to the user until 31 August.
• Following the Israeli authorities’ re-authorization of G2G convoys from Jordan on 7 July, eight G2G convoys comprising 293 trucks transported cargo on this route to the Erez West (Zikim) crossing.
• After prolonged denials, the Cluster team was authorized by Israeli authorities to reach the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem platform on 29 July to carry out an inventory of humanitarian aid. However, the team could not complete the inventory due to the very restricted time window allotted to the mission.

Challenges

• Despite the announced tactical pause in military activity by Israeli authorities in three areas of Gaza (Al-Mawasi, Deir al Balah and Gaza city) since 27 July, there has been no effective improvement in security conditions. As a result, humanitarian transport operations across Gaza continue to face challenges and most convoys have been looted before reaching their intended destinations.
• While items such as food, nutrition, health, hygiene, and water treatment supplies are generally eligible for entry into Gaza by Israeli authorities, approval is not guaranteed. Pre-clearance through the UN2720 Mechanism and Israeli customs clearance are required, resulting in only eight organizations being able to dispatch humanitarian aid to Gaza through the UN-coordinated manifest.
• Limitations in Israeli crossing and scanning capacity at Allenby Bridge have resulted in a reduction of G2G convoys from three a week, each comprising 60 trucks, to 50 trucks for each of the three convoys per week. Meanwhile, since 3 August, the B2B convoy modality has been paused by Israeli authorities until further notice; this suspension follows the introduction of a new requirement by Israeli authorities that mandates the escort of B2B trucks between the Jordan River and Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing, a condition that they cannot reportedly meet at present due to limited escorting capacity.
• ·    Since the very limited resumption of aid movement from Egypt on 13 July, Israeli authorities have introduced customs clearance for humanitarian cargo transported from Egypt. This has presented additional bureaucratic hurdles, delays, and costs for humanitarian organizations. The requirement was only lifted for one week (see above).
• Israeli authorities continue to impose severe limitations on the type of cargo permitted for entry and the number of organizations authorized to move cargo to Gaza. Only eight organizations have been able to manifest cargo. Thus, humanitarian partners have paused the internal cargo prioritization process, so that all cargo currently permitted for entry by Israeli authorities (health, nutrition, food, water treatment and hygiene supplies) can be manifested for Israeli authorities' approval.

Response

• On 24 July, the ETC assessed telecommunications coverage on the road between Deir al Balah and Kerem Shalom crossing, passing through Khan Younis and Morag corridor, to support safe humanitarian access in Gaza. The initiative aimed at ensuring partners remain connected throughout the corridor to facilitate the safe entry of humanitarian aid. Findings will guide future coordination and connectivity planning across the aid corridor.
• The ETC continues to advocate for the entry of sufficient fuel for the telecommunications sector in Gaza.
• For more information on ETC activities, please visit:Palestine: Conflict | Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) (etcluster.org).

Challenges

• Extensive damage to infrastructure and telecommunications equipment caused by intensified hostilities have severely limited telecommunications and internet services across Gaza. Repair efforts are hindered by access restrictions as well as supply shortages.
• The entry of telecommunications equipment, spare parts, and engine oil into Gaza has been blocked since 2 March 2025, rendering existing supplies limited and sporadic and restoration efforts extremely difficult. These constraints are significantly impeding the ETC’s ability to deploy planned services and support humanitarian coordination.
• Critical funding shortfalls continue to restrict the ETC’s ability to meet the immediate, life-saving communications needs of humanitarian responders in Gaza. None of the US$2.5 million required by the ETC under the 2025 Flash Appeal have been met.

Protection against sexual abuse and exploitation (PSEA) remains a cross-cutting priority for all clusters. Aid distribution must be delivered with dignity and respect. Any wrongdoing can be reported through SAWA’s toll-free number 164. SAWA will assist and provide services free of charge and with the utmost confidentiality.

To promote accountability to affected people, the online Humanitarian Service Directory provides information on aid services, helplines, and key messages, and is available via hyperlink and QR code.

* Asterisks indicate that a figure, sentence, or section has been rectified, added, or retracted after the initial publication of this update.