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UN envoy visits Gaza hospitals and water facilities as partners scale up relief
Summary
The undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Tom Fletcher, accompanied a UN aid convoy into Gaza, visited hospitals and the only operational water well in North Gaza, and humanitarian partners reported daily delivery of 2,500 cubic meters of safe drinking water serving about 411,000 people.
The undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Tom Fletcher, accompanied a UN aid convoy into the Gaza Strip on the day of the briefing and toured hospitals and the only operational water well in North Gaza Governorate, a UN spokesperson said.
The UN spokesperson quoted the secretary-general’s message on the broader conflict area as: “Silence the guns, stop the escalation, respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic Of The Congo, uphold international human rights law, and international humanitarian law.” Turning to Gaza specifically, the spokesperson said Fletcher met with patients, staff and management at Al Shifa hospital in Gaza City and Alauda hospital in Jabaliyah, and spoke with survivors and returnees in Jabaliya trying to rebuild amid rubble.
The spokesperson described the well in North Gaza as run by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and “a crucial lifeline for clean water given the extensive destruction of Gaza's water infrastructure.” UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) partners supporting water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services reported distributing 2,500 cubic meters of safe drinking water daily across Gaza and North Gaza governorates, serving about 411,000 people. One partner provides cleaning services at 17 displacement sites in northern Gaza, benefiting nearly 12,000 people, OCHA partners said.
The spokesperson said WASH partners are carrying out assessments across the Strip to repair wells, install dosing pumps and set up water filling points. “While some repairs are already underway, further progress hinges on teams being able to clear debris and carry out assessments of explosive hazards,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that Fletcher crossed from the north of the Strip into Deir El Bala in central Gaza and held discussions with humanitarian workers from local and international nongovernmental organizations as well as UN agencies, stressing the need to seize opportunities presented by any ceasefire to sustain and expand relief efforts.
The briefing did not include new funding commitments or a timetable for expanded operations; the spokesperson said further details would be shared by humanitarian colleagues as they become available.
