Humanitarian Situation Update #300 | Gaza Strip

The Humanitarian Situation Updates on the Gaza Strip and on the West Bank are both Issued every Wednesday/Thursday. The Gaza Humanitarian Response Update is issued every other Tuesday. The next Humanitarian Situation Update on the Gaza Strip will be published on 2 or 3 July.

Key Highlights

• Gaza's water crisis has reached critical levels, with only 40 per cent of drinking water facilities functional and fuel shortages pushing water systems to near collapse. By mid-June, 93 per cent of households faced water insecurity, exacerbating thirst and public health risks.
• Over 76,000 students in Gaza were unable to sit for their general secondary examinations over the past two academic years.
• Families in Gaza are risking their lives to access food, with nearly daily mass casualties reported as people attempt to reach supplies. Most families survive on just one nutritiously poor meal per day, while adults routinely skip meals to prioritize children, the elderly, and the ill amid deepening hunger and desperation.
• Incidents of gender-based violence continue to rise, with women and girls facing increasing risks of abuse, exploitation, coercion and harmful coping strategies in their struggle to survive.
• On average, 112 children have been admitted daily for treatment of acute malnutrition since the start of the year, with the situation set to deteriorate if conditions do not change immediately, UNICEF warns.

Humanitarian Developments

• Since 18 March 2025, Israeli forces have escalated bombardment from the air, land and sea across the Gaza Strip and expanded ground operations. This has resulted in hundreds of casualties, continued destruction of civilian infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. According to the Site Management Cluster (SMC), more than 684,000 Palestinians in Gaza were displaced between 18 March and 24 June. With no safe place to go, many people have sought refuge in overcrowded displacement sites, makeshift shelters, damaged buildings, streets and open areas. People have been confined to ever-shrinking spaces, with 82.6 per cent of the Gaza Strip now within Israeli-militarized zones or placed under displacement orders since 18 March. Fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups has been reported.
• According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 18 and 25 June, 519 Palestinians were killed, and 2,359 were injured. Between 7 October 2023 and 25 June 2025, the MoH in Gaza reported that at least 56,156 Palestinians were killed, and 132,239 Palestinians were injured. This includes 5,833 people killed and 20,198 injured since the re-escalation of hostilities on 18 March 2025, according to MoH. According to MoH, casualties among people trying to access food supplies has increased to 549 fatalities and more than 4,066 injuries since 27 May 2025.
• On 23 June, the MoH in Gaza published a list of its records of 55,202 Palestinian fatalities in Gaza between 7 October 2023 and 15 June 2025, out of the total number of reported fatalities (see above). According to the list, 17,121 children (31 per cent), 9,126 women (17 per cent), 24,818 men (45 per cent) and 4,137 elderly persons (seven per cent) have been killed (also available on the Health Cluster’s Unified Dashboard here).
• Between 18 and 24 June, incidents resulting in fatalities included the following:
  • On 18 June, at about 14:00, eight Palestinians, including a nine-year-old boy, were reportedly killed when their group was hit in Al Bureij refugee camp, in Deir al Balah.
  • On 18 June, eight Palestinians were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit near Ali Mosque in Az Zaytoun neighbourhood, in eastern Gaza city.
  • On 18 June, at about 4:30, six Palestinians were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Al Maghazi refugee camp, in Deir al Balah.
  • On 19 June, at about 11:00, 12 Palestinians, including three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a tent sheltering internally displaced persons (IDPs) was hit in Ash Shati’ (Beach) camp, west of Gaza city.
  • On 19 June, at about 12:00, five Palestinians were reportedly killed and 30 others injured when IDP tents were hit near in Tal Al Hawa, south of Gaza city.
  • On 19 June, at about 12:30, 14 Palestinians from the same family, including two children and one woman, were reportedly killed and several others injured when three houses were hit in Jabalya al Balad, in North Gaza.
  • On 20 June, at about midnight, 12 Palestinians, including at least four females, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in western Deir al Balah.
  • On 20 June, at about 15:00, seven Palestinians, including two children, were reportedly killed and others injured when an assembly point used for phone charging and internet connectivity was hit in An Nassar neighbourhood in Gaza city. This was the third reported incident where a phone charging station in Gaza city was hit in a week.
  • On 23 June, at about 13:45 hours, at least five Palestinians, including a pregnant woman, her husband and their two daughters (aged 3 and 5 years), were reportedly killed when an IDP tent was hit near the offices of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Al Mawasi area, in western Khan Younis.
  • On 24 June, at about 3:00, 10 Palestinians, including three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in As Sabra neighbourhood, in southern Gaza city.
• Between 18 and 25 June, eight Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza, according to the Israeli military. Between 7 October 2023 and 25 June 2025, according to Israeli forces and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,635 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023 and its immediate aftermath. This includes 435 soldiers killed, in addition to 2,738 soldiers injured, in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation in October 2023. Of these, 28 soldiers were killed and 154 injured since the re-escalation of hostilities on 18 March 2025. On 21 June, the Israeli military retrieved the bodies of three Israeli hostages from the Gaza Strip; the three Israelis, including a soldier, were killed on 7 October 2023, according to the Israeli army spokesperson. As of 24 June, it is estimated that 50 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead and whose bodies are being withheld.
• Mass casualties have continued to be reported daily over the past 30 days, after non-UN militarized distribution sites started to operate in Gaza, as people approached or gathered near these sites or waited on routes designated by the Israeli authorities for the UN to collect trucks carrying aid. Between 13 and 16 June, the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) recorded over 20 incidents “where Israeli forces targeted civilians around aid distribution.” According to ACLED, most incidents occurred near militarized distribution sites. Briefing journalists in Deir al Balah on 22 June 2025, the OCHA OPT Head of Office, Jonathan Whittall, said: “The majority of the casualties have been shot or shelled trying to reach US-Israeli distribution sites purposefully set up in militarized zones.(…) Others have been killed when Israeli forces have fired on Palestinian crowds waiting for food along routes into Gaza. Just a few days ago more than 60 people were killed and hundreds injured when a tank opened fire on a crowd of people waiting for food trucks to arrive. Some people have also been killed or injured by armed gangs, including those operating in areas close to Israeli forces. Those trying to protect aid convoys are often themselves targeted by Israeli forces.”
• According to the UN Human Rights office (OHCHR) in the OPT, in many cases, “witnesses reported being fired on by fire from Israeli military ground forces and quadcopters, as well as the shelling of crowds waiting for food.” On 24 June, OHCHR reported that since 27 May, the Israeli military has shelled and shot Palestinians trying to reach militarized distribution sites, resulting in the reporting killing of over 410 Palestinians. Another 93 people were reportedly killed by the Israeli army while crowds were attempting to approach the few aid convoys of the UN and other humanitarian organizations. At least 3,000 Palestinians have also been injured in these incidents, OHCHR noted.
• On 24 June, ICRC reported that its 60-bed field hospital in Rafah has had to activate its mass casualty procedures 20 times since 27 May, indicating that “the scale and frequency of these incidents is an alarming testament to the intolerable dangers civilians face as they attempt to access assistance.” On 24 June, the hospital received a mass casualty influx of 149 cases, of which 16 were declared dead on arrival, and three more died of their wounds shortly thereafter. The vast majority of patients suffered gunshot injuries, with all responsive patients reporting they were wounded while on their way to a distribution site.
• On 21 June, the Palestinian Ministry of Education (MoE) stated that 49,000 high-school students have started their general secondary examinations (also known as Tawjihi) in the West Bank and overseas, while students in Gaza have been deprived the opportunity to take their exams for the second consecutive year. According to the Education Cluster, MoE confirmed that approximately 35,000 students for the 2023/2024 academic year missed their exams, so did 41,618 students enrolled in Tawjihi for the 2024/2025 academic year; in total, over 76,000 students in Gaza were unable to sit for their general secondary examinations over the past two academic years. The MoE further stated that the number of Tawjihi students for the 2023/2024 academic year had decreased from 39,000 to 35,000 due to dropouts, students leaving Gaza before the closure of Rafah crossing’s closure in May 2024, and, tragically, some may be among the students who were killed. For students who are currently overseas, MoE is supporting about 2,000 students from Gaza in taking their Tawjihi exams in 37 countries, the majority (1,598) in Egypt. On 23 June, MoE stated that it was agreed to begin special arrangements for holding the Tawjihi exams for students in the Gaza Strip as soon as possible. Although the MoE, along with some Education Cluster members, is working on plans to administer the exams, the implementation of these plans remains contingent on a ceasefire, the lifting of restrictions on the entry of supplies, including tablets needed for the exams, and the reopening of border crossings.

Shrinking Humanitarian Space

• On 23 June, for the first time since the limited resumption of aid entry on 19 May, a convoy from the West Bank – comprising six trucks – offloaded medical items at the Israeli side of Kerem Shalom crossing. Earlier truck movements, on 19 and 22 June, were denied by the Israeli authorities due to the reported closure of Tarqumiya crossing in the West Bank. This development follows Israeli authorities’ authorization for some health supplies stored in the West Bank to enter Gaza, limited to medical cargo procured internationally and stored in UN warehouses. Meanwhile, cargo dispatch through the Egypt route remains blocked by Israeli authorities. According to the Egyptian Red Crescent, as of 24 June, 734 trucks for UN and International NGOs (54 per cent of which carry food supplies) are waiting in Al Arish, ready to be dispatched to the Gaza Strip.
• In vast areas across the Gaza Strip, humanitarian teams are required to coordinate their movements with the Israeli authorities. Between 18 and 24 June, out of 84 attempts to coordinate planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip, nearly 37 per cent were denied by Israeli authorities, 11 per cent were initially accepted but faced impediments, including blocks or delays on the ground potentially resulting in missions being aborted or partially accomplished, 40 per cent were fully facilitated, and 12 per cent were withdrawn by the organizers for logistical, operational, or security reasons. These include 51 attempts to coordinate aid movements in or to northern Gaza, of which 47 per cent (24) were facilitated, 33 per cent (17) were denied, six per cent (three) faced impediments, and 14 per cent (seven) were withdrawn. In southern Gaza, out of 33 attempts, 30 per cent (10) were facilitated, 42 per cent (14) were denied, 18 per cent (six) faced impediments and nine per cent (three) were withdrawn.
• The ongoing fuel blockade and multiple denials by Israeli authorities of humanitarian missions seeking to access remaining fuel reserves within Gaza have resulted in a drastic depletion of fuel supplies, placing life-sustaining services at severe risk. While humanitarian partners have implemented strict rationing measures, critical health and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services are at risk of imminently closing if the entry of fuel is not urgently restored and if access to existing reserves within Gaza is not facilitated. On 18 June, the UN managed to retrieve about 280,000 litres of fuel from stockpiles stranded in a no-go area in Rafah, after 12 previous requests were denied by Israeli authorities. In two other missions on 20 and 23 June, about 260,000 litres and 248,000 litres of fuel were retrieved. In total, between 18 and 24 June, five UN-led attempts were made to retrieve fuel from a fuel station in Rafah, of which three were successful in retrieving about 788,000 litres of fuel, including two that faced impediments.
• Between 18 and 24 June, the Israeli military issued three displacement orders for parts of Khan Younis, North Gaza and Gaza governorates. Combined, the orders cover 3.3 square kilometres. Since 18 March, the Israeli military issued 47 displacement orders, placing about 281.9 square kilometres under displacement orders (77 per cent of the Gaza Strip). As of 25 June, 82.6 per cent of the Gaza Strip’s territory is within Israeli-militarized zones or have been placed under displacement orders (they largely overlap).
• Between 10 and 21 June, the Gaza Strip experienced five fiber-optic cable cuts, causing a complete internet outage and widespread mobile service interruptions. This has severely hindered life-saving humanitarian operations and the ability of people to access critical information and essential services. On 21 June, a telecommunications operator confirmed the restoration of landline and internet connectivity in central Gaza that had been under a total blackout since 17 June, following successful repair efforts. The telecommunications operators alerted that the network has reached a "critical stage" due to repeated outages and severe damage, warning that service stability depends on avoiding further damage to the main fiber routes. The restoration of communication services was made possible through repairs conducted by technical teams of telecommunications operators, supported by humanitarian partners including the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) through advocacy with relevant authorities. According to the ETC, telecommunications, including internet services, across Gaza remain limited due to recurrent and extensive infrastructure damage caused by hostilities, compounded by a lack of spare parts and engine oil needed to sustain communications services. Ongoing restrictions on the entry of aid and other essential items continue to block the import of critically needed equipment. This is further compounded by nearly depleted fuel reserves, which have already caused site failures and could imminently lead to a complete collapse of connectivity across Gaza.

Worsening access to health care

• The Palestinian MoH in Gaza has warned of an imminent crisis in medical laboratory and blood bank services due to severe shortages in essential testing materials and consumables. The Director of the Laboratory Department at the Ministry pointed out that 48.7 per cent of laboratory testing materials have less than one month of stock, while 48.2 per cent of consumables and laboratory supplies are also below the one-month threshold. This severe decline directly threatens the continuity of laboratory diagnostic services and blood transfusions. The situation is further worsened by the destruction of 50 per cent of hospital laboratories and 60 per cent of primary care laboratories, which rendered 514 laboratory devices non-functional, the Director added, calling for urgent international action to support the health system and maintain basic medical services in Gaza.
• According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Emergency Situation Update, haemodialysis services in Gaza face severe constraints, with only five units still operational, comprising 114 machines that serve about 680 patients. These units are in Al Aqsa, Al Shifa, Al Rantisi and Nasser hospitals and Al Zawaida field hospital and are all operating under suboptimal conditions and above capacity. These include 24 haemodialysis machines at Al Aqsa Hospital, where 120 patients are now receiving only two-hour sessions, instead of the standard four hours for each session. At Nasser Medical Complex, the haemodialysis unit, which is the only one in southern Gaza following the shutdown of those at An Najjar and the European Gaza hospitals, has 26 functioning machines and is currently serving 350 patients, far exceeding its capacity.
• Emergency medical teams (EMTs), supported by WHO, continue to sustain critical services amid growing constraints on health care delivery, driven by insecurity and severe shortages of medical supplies and fuel. Since January 2024, EMTs have delivered nearly three million medical consultations and performed over 40,000 emergency surgeries. Last week, WHO facilitated the deployment of a new international EMT to Al Ahli Hospital, in Gaza city, to support surgical and anaesthesia services while rotating the previous team. Despite their essential role, nearly 50 per cent of EMT staff have been denied entry into Gaza, according to WHO, hampering the scale and continuity of care and denying relief to overstretched and exhausted medical teams who have been working under extreme pressure for 20 months to address devastating humanitarian needs. As of 23 June, there are 28 EMTs comprising 510 local staff and 61 international staff in the Gaza Strip, including eight in Gaza governorate, 11 in Deir al Balah, eight in Khan Younis and one in Rafah.
• On 18 June, WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, stated that Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis is struggling to operate under severe strain and critical shortages. The hospital is located within an area that was placed under a displacement order, and many health workers cannot reach it due to safety concerns or lack of fuel for transportation. Currently, 590 patients are hospitalized, nearly double the facility’s capacity, with 51 patients intubated. A WHO-supported tent originally designed for 88 paediatric and surgical patients now serves as an overcrowded trauma ward with 100 beds. Despite the urgent need, the hospital cannot expand its capacity further due to a shortage of ventilators, monitors, beds, and staff. On 19 June, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) reported that Nasser Medical Complex has closed its maternity ward, which treated about 900 pregnant women and newborns last month, leaving many pregnant women without critical care. UNFPA also warned that because fuel is running out, 80 per cent of critical care units, including those for childbirth, are at risk of shutting down. With 130 women giving birth every day, the agency stressed that their survival is in jeopardy without fuel.
• Highlighting the devastating impact of the fuel shortage on health care, MSF stated that the dangerously low fuel levels remain a major concern for people in Gaza. Medical equipment, air conditioning, elevators, oxygen concentrators, ventilators, and cold-chain storage for medicines and vaccines all rely on fuel to function. An MSF medical team leader in Gaza city reported: “Newborns in neonatal intensive care units are often too small to breathe on their own – they need ventilators and oxygen to survive… But recently, the lack of fuel has caused electricity at Al-Helou Maternity Hospital in northern Gaza to cut out several times, shutting off ventilators and oxygen, and putting babies’ lives at immediate risk.” MSF’s emergency coordinator in Gaza added: “The charade of only allowing medical and fuel supplies at the very last minute before a looming disaster is nothing but a band-aid on a gushing wound. The weaponization of aid must end.”

Ongoing restrictions leave thousands without shelter

• Relentless displacement, access restrictions, and the near-total destruction of housing have left hundreds of thousands of people without adequate shelter while humanitarian actors are left without the means to help, said the Shelter Cluster in a statement on 19 March. The capacity of shelter actors to scale up and respond is crippled by the ongoing restrictions on the entry of supplies. According to the Cluster, no shelter materials have entered Gaza since 1 March and since the limited resumption of aid entry on 19 May, basic emergency shelter assistance such as tents and tarpaulins remain prohibited. Some 980,000 shelter items, including over 49,000 tents, are pre-positioned and ready for prioritization and dispatch as soon as access is granted. The Cluster estimates that 35 pallets of shelter materials (two trucks) are needed for just 100 households, which demonstrates “the immense logistical demands of even minimal-scale shelter assistance.” Meanwhile, while an estimated 1.1 million people require emergency shelter assistance, emergency shelter kits are being reconfigured from residual stocks to cope with some needs. “Shelter conditions have [thus] rapidly deteriorated. Makeshift shelters are now concentrated in bombed-out schools, public lots, and urban rubble, often far exceeding site capacity and without basic infrastructure. Fuel shortages and the collapse of water and sanitation services have turned many shelters into public health hotspots,” while overcrowding has increased gender-based violence and other protection risks, according to the statement.

Escalating food insecurity and protection risks

• “The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains critical, with conditions falling far below the minimum required to deliver sustained and orderly assistance to a population on the brink of famine,” warned the World Food Programme (WFP) on 20 June. Following 78 days of a full blockade on the entry of aid and all other supplies, as of 24 June, most UN food convoys that have entered the Gaza Strip (including those carrying more than 9,500 metric tons of wheat flour) have been offloaded by desperate people along the way, with some looted by armed criminals. Additionally, there are daily reports of attacks on civilians attempting to collect food supplies along established humanitarian aid convoy routes or from militarized distribution sites, resulting in mass casualties (see above). All 25 UN-supported bakeries remain shut due to restrictions on the entry of aid and related social disruption. The Food Security Sector (FSS) warns that the current volume and pace of delivery remain critically insufficient to meet the needs of Gaza’s entire population, which is facing high levels of food insecurity. It stressed that only a massive scale-up of food delivery can stabilise the situation and allow humanitarian partners to carry out safe and dignified food distributions.
• On 21 June, one FSS partner resumed operations at one of their main kitchens in Deir al Balah for the first time in over 12 weeks, utilizing the limited food quantities available. Despite this limited progress, access constraints, security challenges, and resource constraints have led to a significant decline in kitchen operations in Gaza over the past two months. Between 21 April and 21 June 2025, the number of operational kitchens decreased by roughly 76 per cent, with only 42-45 kitchens operating, and daily meal distributions were reduced by nearly 83 per cent, to approximately 185,000 meals per day. As of 24 June, following the re-opening of the community kitchen in Deir al Balah, the number of daily meals increased and now stands at 252,000 meals. The continued increase in meal production will depend on both food supply and fuel availability. Additional fuel is urgently required to support partners’ cargo collection from crossings and scaling up kitchen operations.
• Between 1 and 17 June, WFP, together with FSS partners, collected qualitative food insecurity data to shed light on households’ consumption patterns and coping strategies in Gaza. Most families reported surviving on one meagre meal a day – thin broths, lentils or rice with salt, macaroni, cans of beans or peas, and boiled legumes. One-third said they go entire days without eating or rely on a single piece of bread and duqqa (a blend of herbs, usually eaten with olive oil). Many drink water to calm hunger pangs, a coping strategy widely reported. As one parent shared: “[When my children wake up at night hungry] I tell them drink water and close your eyes. It breaks me. I do the same – drink water and pray for morning.” Adults routinely reduce their food intake to prioritize children, the elderly, and the ill. Those without income or able-bodied rely on small quantities of borrowed basic food from relatives and neighbours. Around 15 per cent resort to scavenging for food in the garbage or rubble. Countless people risk their lives to secure aid from militarized distribution points, facing threats of gunfire, shelling, stampedes and assaults. As one respondent shared: "We don’t want to be out there. But what choice do we have? Our kids cry for food. We don’t sleep at night. We walk, wait, and hope we come back.” The monitors observed signs of malnutrition-pale faces, gaunt cheeks, and lethargy. Respondents spoke of severe weight loss and worsening mental health, with some expressing suicidal thoughts during interviews. Others shared stories about their children mixing feelings of grief and hunger, as one mother shared: “I told my daughter her deceased father is safe, eating and drinking with God. Now, she cries every day and says I’m hungry and want to go to my father because he has food to feed us.”
• Incidents of gender-based violence (GBV) in Gaza continue to rise, as highlighted in recent guidance notes for humanitarian actors and GBV case managers. Chronic food scarcity and the cooking energy crisis not only undermines physical health and survival, but also exacerbates gender inequality, particularly affecting women and girls. Food scarcity has elevated the risk of intimate partner violence, while economic stress has resulted in harmful coping strategies. For example, the GBV Case Management Task Team continues to see increasing numbers of reported cases of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), survival sex, and early marriage as coping mechanisms in the face of hunger. Moreover, UNFPA highlighted how food deprivation can itself be used in some cases as a means of control whereby “abusive partners or family members may deliberately deny women or girls access to food as a form of punishment, coercion, or subjugation… [which] constitutes economic violence, a recognized form of GBV.” As resources like food, water, and cooking fuel become scarcer, women and girls are also exposed to heightened risks of harassment, assault, and exploitation during the search for food at distribution points. As a result, structural inequalities are deepening, disproportionately affecting widows, divorced women, and adolescent girls, especially in the context of collapsed basic services that severely limit access to support and protection.

A continued increase in child malnutrition rates

• On average, 112 children have been admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition every day since the beginning of 2025, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports. “Every one of these cases is preventable. The food, water, and nutrition treatments they desperately need are being blocked from reaching them. Man-made decisions that are costing lives. Israel must urgently allow the large-scale delivery of life-saving aid through all border crossings,” said UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Edouard Beigbeder. As of 15 June, a total of 18,809 children under five years of age have been admitted for treatment of acute malnutrition, including 5,486 in May – within a population of children where wasting was non-existent 20 months ago. Of the nearly 19,000 children admitted in 2025, 2,558 suffered from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), the most lethal form of malnutrition. “These children need consistent, supervised treatment, safe water, and medical care to survive – all of which are increasingly scarce in Gaza today,” stated UNICEF.
• Most children with acute malnutrition are treated through outpatient care, requiring weekly visits to nutrition sites. However, repeated closures (sometimes temporary) and relocations of the 80-120 outpatient sites, due to displacement, insecurity, and fuel shortages have severely disrupted care and delayed recovery. Children in need of hospitalization in one of the four available stabilization centres at hospitals are similarly affected. Children with stunting and wasting face long-term consequences, including impaired physical growth, weakened immunity, and poor cognitive development, all of which can have lasting social and economic impacts later in life. Although limited supplies are entering, ongoing restrictions on the entry of aid continue to limit supplies required to implement nutrition programmes at the necessary scale, including for pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBW). Overall, according to the Nutrition Cluster, only 28,000 PBW and 167,000 children were reached in May, or 19 and 57 per cent of the Nutrition Cluster's monthly target of 149,000 PBW and 290,000 children under five.

Water crisis

• The WASH crisis in Gaza is driven by severe and ongoing fuel shortages, persistent disruptions and damages to the Israeli Mekorot pipelines, and significant water losses (estimated at 50 to 60 per cent depending on the location) through networks that are dilapidated or damaged by bombing. As of 24 June, 77 per cent of WASH assets and facilities fall within the Israeli-militarized zone or in areas that have been placed under displacement orders since 18 March. Ongoing fuel shortages have forced several water wells to cease operations and desalination plants to operate at minimal capacity, resulting in reduced volumes of water available for distribution by WASH partners. Currently, just 40 per cent of Gaza’s drinking water production facilities remain functional (87 out of 217), and all of them are under imminent risk of shutting down due to the over 16 weeks blockade on the entry of fuel. WASH actors are now only able to produce 50 per cent of the water produced during the ceasefire, marking one of the lowest levels since October 2023. As a result, WASH partners estimate that most people are receiving less than the emergency standard of 15 litres per person per day. According to the WASH Cluster's fourth Light-Touch Monitoring (LTM) survey covering 9 to 12 June, 93 per cent of households experienced water insecurity in the Gaza Strip.
• “If the current more than 100-day blockade on fuel coming into Gaza does not end, children will begin to die of thirst … hospital generators [will] stop … and incubators [will] go dark,” stated UNICEF Spokesperson, James Elder, at a press briefing on 20 June. Referring to it as “a man-made drought,” he added: “This is Gaza’s most critical moment since this war on children began – a woeful bar to sink below. A virtual blockade is in place; humanitarian aid is being sidelined; the daily killing of girls and boys in Gaza does not register; and now a deliberate fuel crisis is severing Palestinians’ most essential element for survival: water.” He noted that the fuel crisis is also leading to a situation whereby donkey carts, which can barely carry 500 litres of water each, are replacing trucks that can carry 15,000 litres each, while donkeys themselves are slowing as “there’s barely enough food to keep them moving.”
• Between 8 and 22 June, based on available data, 33 WASH Cluster partners distributed a daily average of 22,000 cubic metres of drinking water through trucking to 1,914 water collection points. However, water trucking operations are declining. Trucked water must now travel greater distances from fewer production points, delivering lower volumes of water at each location. This has heightened desperation among communities, leading to a noted increase in attempts by some people to divert water trucks from established routes to their own communities. Alarmingly, for the first time, fear of personal safety has become a major barrier to accessing water. Moreover, according to the LTM report, there has been a sharp increase in the number of people reporting worsening access to water and sanitation. For example, in Deir al Balah, 97 per cent of respondents reported deteriorating access to drinking water compared with 20 per cent in April.
• Sanitation infrastructure is also under severe strain. According to the latest LTM survey, an increasing number of people cite overcrowding and lack of space, particularly in shelters and makeshift settings, as the main barriers to accessing sanitation facilities. Access to soap at the household level has also significantly declined. While over 90 per cent reported having access to soap in February, this figure dropped to just 70 per cent by June. The lack of sufficient and clean water also undermines dignity and has contributed to the spread of waterborne and hygiene-related diseases. According to the Health Cluster, between 11 and 17 June, cases of acute watery diarrhoea increased from 33 to 37 per cent of all reportable diseases, cases of bloody diarrhoea increased from 0.2 to 0.4 per cent, and cases of acute jaundice syndrome increased 0.3 to 0.4 per cent. This alarming trend underscores the urgent need for increased resource allocation, including fuel, medical supplies and WASH interventions, to prevent further deterioration in public health conditions.

Funding

• As of 25 June 2025, Member States have disbursed approximately US$688 million out of the $4 billion (17 per cent) requested to meet the most critical humanitarian needs of three million out of 3.3 million people identified as requiring assistance in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 2025, under the 2025 Flash Appeal for the OPT. Nearly 88 per cent of the requested funds are for humanitarian response in Gaza, with just over 12 per cent for the West Bank. Moreover, during May 2025, the oPt Humanitarian Fund managed 128 ongoing projects, totalling $74.2 million, to address urgent needs in the Gaza Strip (88 per cent) and the West Bank (12 per cent). Of these projects, 63 are being implemented by INGOs, 49 by national NGOs and 16 by UN agencies. Notably, 47 out of the 79 projects implemented by INGOs or the UN are being implemented in collaboration with national NGOs. For more information, please see OCHA’s Financial Tracking Service webpage and the oPt HF webpage.

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