Publications
In the Gaza Strip, one Palestinian, aged 15, was killed on 12 April, and around 450 others were injured, in protests that took place near Israel’s perimeter fence in the context of the ‘Great March of Return’ demonstrations. Of all Palestinians injured in the protests during the reporting period, 200 were hospitalized, including 71 injured by live ammunition, according to Palestinian medical sources
Israel exercises direct control over the 20 per cent of Hebron City, known as H2, which is home to some 33,000 Palestinians and a few hundred Israeli settlers. This area has witnessed multiple cycles of violence in the context of continuing settlement activities, which are in contravention of international law. The latest escalation erupted in October 2015, following which, Israel tightened the access restrictions it imposes on Palestinians living in the vicinity of the settlement compounds. To better understand the specific vulnerabilities of this coercive environment on the protection, services, livelihoods and social life of affected residents, OCHA, along with humanitarian partners, conducted an inter-cluster needs assessment in summer 2018. This consisted of a survey carried out of a representative sample of 280 families living in the most affected areas of H2. The findings presented here have been used to prioritize humanitarian interventions that were subsequently incorporated into the 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).
The Gaza Strip faces an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, impacting the livelihoods and access to essential services by its two million residents. This crisis has been driven by over 11 years of an Israeli blockade and an unsolved internal Palestinian divide, exacerbated since March 2018 by the massive increase in Palestinian casualties in the context of demonstrations taking place near Israel’s perimeter fence, as well as limited escalations in hostilities. The following indicators were identified by the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) to monitor the crisis, trigger humanitarian action and prevent further deterioration.
Longstanding restrictions on the movement of people and goods to and from the Gaza Strip have undermined the living conditions of about two million Palestinians in Gaza. Many of the restrictions, originally imposed by Israel in the early 1990s, were intensified after June 2007, following the Hamas takeover of Gaza and the imposition of a blockade. These restrictions continue to reduce access to livelihoods, essential services and housing, disrupt family life, and undermine people’s hopes for a secure and prosperous future.
This Annual Report presents information on the achievements of the oPt Humanitarian Fund during the 2018 calendar year. However, because grant allocation, project implementation and reporting processes often take place over multiple years (CBPFs are designed to support ongoing and evolving humanitarian responses)
“Great March of Return” demonstrations marks one year on 30 March 2019. Palestinians injured in demonstrations face greater barriers to accessing health care outside Gaza. Demolitions rise in the first quarter of 2019. Palestinians in Area C are directly affected by Israeli restrictions and control of WASH-related infrastructure.
This month witnessed one of the most significant escalations of hostilities in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel since 2014, after a rocket was fired from Gaza on 25 March, severely damaging a house in central Israel and injuring seven Israelis. Following the incident, the Israeli Air Force struck multiple locations across Gaza, injuring two and displacing sixteen families, while Palestinian armed groups fired dozens of projectiles towards southern Israel, reportedly causing damage. The Israeli authorities also closed the Kerem Shalom and Erez crossings, allowing only movement of urgent humanitarian cases, and prohibited all fishing along the coast. A relative calm appears to be holding since 27 March.
The demolition of residential, livelihood and service infrastructure, on the grounds of a lack of Israeli-issued permits, has continued throughout the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem. In the first three months of 2019, a total of 136 Palestinian structures were demolished in the West Bank, of which 48 were in East Jerusalem and 88 in Area C, displacing 218 people, including 97 children and 57 women.
Four Palestinians, including two children, were killed by Israeli forces in the context of the ‘Great March of Return’ (GMR) demonstrations in the Gaza Strip, and another 1,456 were injured. On Saturday, 30 March, which marked both Land Day and one year since the beginning of the demonstrations, Israeli forces killed three Palestinians, including two 17-year-old boys: another man who was injured in the demonstrations died of his wounds three days later. In a separate incident outside of the GMR demonstrations, another man was shot and killed near the perimeter fence on the morning of 30 March. For cumulative casualty figures and breakdowns
On the eve of the one-year mark of the start of the “Great March of Return” demonstrations in the Gaza Strip, the Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, Mr. Jamie McGoldrick, calls on all parties to avoid further deterioration.
