![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/MB-June-Banner-scaled.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Scroll down for the PDF file.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n The Bulletin can be found in the United Nations Information System\u00a0<\/em>on the Question of Palestine (UNISPAL) at <\/em><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/data-collection\/monthly-bulletin\/<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Disclaimer: The texts cited in this Monthly Bulletin have been\u00a0reproduced in their original form<\/u>. The Division for Palestinian Rights is consequently not responsible for the views, positions or discrepancies contained in these texts.<\/em><\/p>\n June 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n Volume XLVIII, Bulletin No. VI<\/strong><\/p>\n Contents<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n On 1 June, UNRWA Commissioner-General issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n Gaza: aid distribution has become a death trap. Mass casualties including scores of injured and killed among starving civilians due to gunshots this morning. This is according to reports from international medics on ground. A distribution point by the Israeli- American plan was put far south in Rafah. This humiliating system has forced thousands of hungry and desperate people to walk for tens of miles to an area that\u2019s all but pulverized due to heavy bombardment by the Israeli Army.<\/p>\n Aid deliveries and distribution must be at scale and safe. In Gaza, this can be done only through the United Nations including UNRWA. The State of Israel must lift the siege and allow the UN safe and unhindered access to bring in aid and distribute it safely. This is the only way to avert mass starvation including among 1 million children. With competing narratives and disinformation campaigns in full gear, international media must be allowed into Gaza to independently report on the ongoing atrocities including this morning\u2019s heinous crime.<\/p>\n On 1 June, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n It is reported today that the Israeli military killed at least 32 Palestinians trying to access food today at distribution points set up in northwestern Rafah and Middle Gaza by the so-called \u2018Gaza Humanitarian Foundation\u2019 (GHF) and Safe Research Solutions (SRS), an American security company tasked by Israel with distributing food.<\/p>\n In the early morning of 1 June, the Israeli military reportedly shot at Palestinians trying to reach the aid distribution points in northwestern Rafah. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, there were over 200 Palestinian casualties, including 31 killed and dozens seriously injured. Around the same time, in a similar incident close to another distribution point south of the Netzarim corridor in Middle Gaza, at least 1 person was shot and killed, and 42 were injured. While more information is being gathered, in both locations, the casualties reportedly include children and women.<\/p>\n The killings today follow numerous reports of the lethal use of firearms against Palestinians approaching GHF distribution points in Rafah and Middle Gaza since this new mechanism was established late last month. Between 27 and 31 May, the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) had already recorded daily violence connected with the mechanism, including reports of at least 19 Palestinians killed and 80 injured in total. At least 2 Palestinians were reportedly missing.<\/p>\n The UN Human Rights Office OPT stresses once more that Israel\u2019s militarised humanitarian assistance mechanism violates international standards on aid distribution, endangers civilians, and is contributing to the catastrophic situation in Gaza. The 20 months of hostilities, Israel\u2019s destruction of civilian infrastructure across Gaza, the almost 3 months of complete siege and blockade of Gaza, attacks on community kitchens, as well as the unlawful targeting of civilians including the police force, have led to a break down in civil order and is forcing on Palestinians the stark choice of dying from starvation or risk being killed while trying to access the meagre food that is being made available through the GHF.<\/p>\n The weaponisation of food for civilians and restricting or preventing their access to other life sustaining services constitute a war crime and may constitute elements of other international crimes, including genocide.<\/p>\n Israel, as the occupying power, has the duty, to the fullest extent of the means available to it, to ensure the provision of food and medical care for the population commensurate with their needs. They have further obligations to facilitate access by international humanitarian service providers and to facilitate the access of the civilian population to that assistance. The Office recalls that in 2024 the International Court of Justice, having found that there was a real and imminent risk of irreparable prejudice to the plausible rights of Palestinians in Gaza under the Genocide Convention, issued binding orders on Israel to take all measures to ensure, without delay, and in cooperation with the UN, the unhindered provision at scale of aid and assistance to Gaza.<\/p>\n As a matter of urgency, Israel must immediately comply if further unnecessary deaths of Palestinian civilians are to be prevented.<\/p>\n On 2 June, <\/em>the new progress report<\/em><\/a> of the United Nations Register of Damage Caused by the Construction of the Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory was presented to the UN General Assembly. The full text of the report is provided below.<\/em><\/p>\n Progress report of the Board of the United Nations Register of Damage Caused by the Construction of the Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory<\/strong><\/p>\n On 2 June, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n OCHA warns that the situation on the ground in the Gaza Strip continues to worsen by the day.<\/p>\n Hostilities across Gaza have reportedly caused mass casualties. In the last two days, partners reported scores of people killed and injured, apparently while gathering to receive supplies near militarized distribution centers in Rafah and Deir al Balah.<\/p>\n Attacks against health facilities have also continued. Yesterday in North Gaza, Noura Al Kaabi Centre for dialysis was reportedly hit. The Ministry of Health in Gaza reports that more than 40 per cent of dialysis patients in Gaza have died since the escalation of the hostilities in October 2023. This is because the centres were either struck or unreachable.<\/p>\n As hostilities continue, people have once again been forced to flee. On Saturday, Israeli authorities issued another displacement order in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah. This has affected about 100,000 people living in more than 200 displacement sites. Two primary healthcare centres and five medical points are within the displacement area, while three hospitals, three field hospitals, seven primary healthcare centres and 20 medical points are located within 1,000 metres of it.<\/p>\n Overall, since 18 March, humanitarian partners estimate that more than 640,000 people, nearly a third of Gaza\u2019s entire population, have been displaced again across the Strip.<\/p>\n The latest displacement order also deprived at least 8,000 students of learning, as tens of functioning temporary learning spaces and a dozen public schools had to suspend their operations. These closures constitute a severe setback for children\u2019s education, limiting access to a safe and structured learning environment.<\/p>\n The UN and its humanitarian partners continue efforts to identify and treat malnutrition whenever possible and as dwindling supplies allow. Last week, they distributed supplements to about 40,000 children, despite severe challenges and restrictions on humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, as people endure deprivation, hunger and the absence of adequate food distribution, looting incidents continue to be reported. The vast majority are people taking flour directly from open trucks, out of clear desperation. However, humanitarian teams have also started observing some criminal looting again.<\/p>\n The UN and its partners continue to call for the full lifting of the restrictions on aid and other essentials to ensure the needs of civilians in Gaza are met.<\/p>\n This comes as people continue to suffer from frequent water shortages. The pipeline in Deir al Balah, which supplied at least 12,000 cubic metres every day, is still not operational, and humanitarians\u2019 attempts to carry out coordinated missions to repair it have been denied. Today, five missions to distribute potable water in the displacement camps in Jabaliya were also denied by Israeli authorities.<\/p>\n Partners working on protection report that last week, five organizations suspended their services due to ongoing hostilities, displacement and access restrictions in Gaza city and North Gaza. However, despite the trauma, exhaustion, and anxiety among displaced workers and volunteers, partners reached thousands of individuals with life-saving protection services during the last two days.\u202fIn view of the desperate conditions on the ground, needs for safe shelter, mental healthcare and basic aid remain acute.<\/p>\n Over the weekend, the UN and its partners kept working to bring supplies from the Palestinian side of Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza. More than 100 truckloads of food and medical supplies were picked up on Saturday and Sunday, bringing to more than 300 the number of truckloads picked up from the Gaza side of the Kerem Shalom crossing since it was reopened.<\/p>\n Today, one of our attempts to collect supplies from Kerem Shalom was denied. Another was still ongoing, awaiting a green light from Israeli authorities, a pause in the bombing along the route, and the allocation of a viable path.<\/p>\n Because of the Israeli weekend and holiday, the border was kept closed, preventing the UN from bringing more supplies through Kerem Shalom since Saturday.<\/p>\n OCHA stresses that even when the crossing is open, severe restrictions on what humanitarians can bring in, both in terms of volume and variety, mean that the supplies currently entering Gaza are still just a trickle and fall far short of what people need.<\/p>\n The following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a> by UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres was issued on 2 June 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n I am appalled by the reports of Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza yesterday. It is unacceptable that Palestinians are risking their lives for food.<\/p>\n I call for an immediate and independent investigation into these events and for perpetrators to be held accountable.<\/p>\n Israel has clear obligations under international humanitarian law to agree to and facilitate humanitarian aid. The unimpeded entry of assistance at scale to meet the enormous needs in Gaza must be restored immediately. The UN must be allowed to work in safety and security under conditions of full respect of humanitarian principles.<\/p>\n I continue to call for an immediate permanent, sustainable ceasefire. All hostages must be released immediately and unconditionally. This is the only path to ensuring security for all. There is no military solution to the conflict.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>On 4 June, the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a> on aid distribution in Gaza was issued by Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator.<\/em><\/p>\n The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat. Emergency medical teams have confirmed treating hundreds of trauma cases. Yesterday alone, dozens were declared dead at hospitals after Israeli forces said they had opened fire. This is the outcome of a series of deliberate choices that have systematically deprived 2 million people of the essentials they need to survive.<\/p>\n I echo the Secretary-General\u2019s call for immediate, independent investigations. These are not isolated incidents, and the perpetrators must be held accountable. No one should have to risk their life to feed their children. As I have repeatedly stressed, we must be allowed to do our jobs: We have the teams, the plan, the supplies and the experience. Open the crossings, all of them.<\/p>\n Let in lifesaving aid at scale, from all directions. Lift the restrictions on what and how much aid we can bring in. Ensure our convoys aren\u2019t held up by delays and denials. Release the hostages. Implement the ceasefire. We value the support of more and more Member States who are joining our call: Let us work.<\/p>\n The following is a <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a> on the Security Council\u2019s 9929th<\/sup> meeting held on 4 June. <\/em><\/p>\n The Security Council today failed to adopt a resolution<\/em><\/a> aiming to ameliorate the plight of civilians in Gaza, as the United States vetoed the measure despite affirmative votes by the other 14 members of the 15-nation organ.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are moments when silence is more eloquent than language,\u201d observed Algeria\u2019s representative, \u201ctoday is one of those\u201d. However, he added: \u201cBut silence cannot defend the dead; it cannot hold the hand of the dying; it cannot confront the machinery of injustice.\u201d Therefore \u201cwe must speak, loudly\u201d, he proclaimed, not to state a position, \u201cbut for the sake of memory, of morality and of the human spirit\u201d. Today\u2019s resolution, even in its obstruction, is a mirror that \u201creflects the agony of multilateralism\u201d and \u201creveals why the Israeli occupier continues its crimes\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n Today, the Council\u2019s elected members stood with clarity, conviction and courage, \u201cthey are the proud bearer of moral legitimacy, they are the true compass of the world\u2019s conscience\u201d, he stressed. He underscored that the Council should have acted to impose a ceasefire in Gaza, \u201cfor the killing of Palestinian children to not become a mere pastime\u201d; \u201cfor starvation not to be legitimized as a weapon\u201d; and \u201cfor future generations to not grow up scorning international law\u201d. Stressing that today\u2019s vote \u201cis not a conclusion\u201d, he quoted a recent statement by his country\u2019s President: \u201cAlgeria will not abandon Palestine.\u201d<\/p>\n That statement immediately followed the Council\u2019s failure to adopt today\u2019s resolution.\u00a0That draft text, introduced by the representative of Slovenia on behalf of the 10 elected members of the Council, would have demanded a ceasefire, the release of all hostages and the lifting of all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza. However, it was defeated by a vote of 14 in favour to 1 against (United States), with no abstentions.\u00a0(As a permanent Council member cast a negative vote, the text was not adopted.)<\/p>\n The representative of that member, the United States, said before the vote that her country\u2019s opposition to the draft \u201cshould come as no surprise\u201d. The text, she stressed, \u201cis unacceptable for what it does say, it is unacceptable for what it does not say and it is unacceptable for the manner in which it has been advanced\u201d.\u00a0She underscored: \u201cAny product that undermines our close ally Israel\u2019s security is a non-starter.\u201d<\/p>\n Adding that the Council cannot be allowed to \u201creward Hamas\u201d, she stated that the text also \u201cdraws false equivalence\u201d between that group and Israel. Additionally, the permanent ceasefire envisioned by the text would leave Hamas in a position to carry out future attacks. She also said that the draft does not acknowledge the disastrous shortcomings of prior methods of aid delivery, which allowed Hamas to enrich itself at the expense of Palestinians. \u201cPerformative actions designed to draw a veto\u201d, she stressed, are harmful while delicate diplomacy is at work.<\/p>\n However, the representative of Slovenia stressed after the vote: \u201cIt was never our intention to provoke a veto.\u201d As such, the draft resolution had only one focus, \u201ca humanitarian one\u201d, he noted, as briefings to the Council on this issue have become increasingly distressing. \u201cJust ashes and sorrow,\u201d he observed. Starving civilians and inflicting immense suffering is inhumane, against international law and not justified by any war objective.\u00a0\u201cWe had hoped, and expected, that this was our shared understanding,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Today\u2019s resolution would have constituted the \u201cbare minimum\u201d for the \u201cfirst-aid kit\u201d that the international community must provide to ease the suffering of Palestinian civilians, underscored the representative of the Russian Federation. Yet, once again, the Council could not adopt a product that would have spared Gaza and the region from descending further into chaos. \u201cWe all today have another opportunity to see who really wants peace in the Middle East, and who wants to continue playing political games,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Other delegations also spotlighted the text as the least the Council could do to address the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. \u201cIt represented the lowest common denominator\u201d that \u201cwe should be able to defend\u201d, stressed Panama\u2019s representative, adding that nothing in the text disregards Israel\u2019s security concerns.\u00a0Sierra Leone\u2019s representative, too, said that the draft \u201crepresented the bare minimum required to address the worsening, catastrophic humanitarian situation\u201d. She warned:\u00a0\u201cThe cost of inaction will be borne by an entire generation.\u201d<\/p>\n In that vein, Somalia\u2019s representative urged Israel to fulfil its international obligations and end its occupation: \u201cThis is the only path to sustainable peace in the Middle East and for the future of many children to come.\u201d International law is clear, underscored Denmark\u2019s representative.\u00a0Humanitarian aid must never be politicized, used as a bargaining chip nor employed as part of a military strategy, she said, adding: \u201cWe have all seen the chaotic scenes at the recently set-up aid distribution sites.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe witness, every day, on our screens, the agonizing killing of innocent Palestinians, including children,\u201d the representative of the Republic of Korea said, also noting the recent chaos at the new aid-distribution sites. \u201cWe are also extremely concerned about the horrific conditions that Israeli hostages, still brutally held by Hamas, are forced to endure,\u201d he added.\u00a0However, blocking or throttling humanitarian aid for millions of people cannot ensure the safe return of hostages, he pointed out.<\/p>\n China\u2019s representative joined these and other Council members to also take issue with the aid-delivery mechanism promoted by the United States and Israel, as it violates the principles of impartiality and neutrality. \u201cThis mechanism has even become a death trap,\u201d he stressed, noting the repeated incidents of civilian casualties near distribution sites and underscoring that military means are not the solution. The United Kingdom\u2019s representative concurred: \u201cThis Israeli Government\u2019s decision to expand its military operations in Gaza and severely restrict aid are unjustifiable, disproportionate and counterproductive.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPeace cannot be maintained by force,\u201d stated Greece\u2019s representative, \u201cit can only be achieved by understanding\u201d. While joining several others in condemning Hamas\u2019 terrorist attacks, he urged Israel to allow the immediate, unhindered flow of humanitarian aid, at scale, throughout the entire Gaza Strip. The partial resumption of aid delivery is hardly sufficient, he added, stating that reports about the deaths of those seeking aid are \u201csimply unthinkable\u201d.<\/p>\n France\u2019s representative observed: \u201cWe all know the tragedy taking place under our very eyes in Gaza, not many words are needed.\u201d Providing humanitarian aid cannot be conditioned on a ceasefire, nor can it be used for political purposes. While the Council should condemn Hamas\u2019 attack, he urged the organ to also work towards a \u201cconcrete implementation of the two-State solution\u201d. For its part, France will continue working towards this objective by co-chairing, with Saudi Arabia, a conference on that solution over 17-20\u00a0June.<\/p>\n The representative of Pakistan also spotlighted that conference, while underscoring that the Council\u2019s failure to adopt today\u2019s text is \u201canother low in the history of this august body\u201d. The veto cast sends the signal that the lives of over 2\u00a0million starved and besieged Palestinians are dispensable. While the Council deliberated, Gaza was decimated, and he stated that to kill civilians seeking bread and water is to criminalize survival.\u00a0\u201cAid dropped from the sky or delivered under armed escort is not a solution, it is a spectacle,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n For his part, the representative of Yemen, speaking for the Arab Group, concurred that the Council\u2019s failure today seriously undermines its mandate. Urging more action to protect the Palestinian people, he expressed support for mediation efforts by Egypt, Qatar and the United States. However, it is vital to resume the entry of humanitarian aid and end Israel\u2019s occupation, he stressed, pointing out that such aid has become a method for forced displacement.<\/p>\n While thanking the 14 Council members who voted in favour of today\u2019s text, the observer of the State of Palestine pointed to the \u201cengineered starvation\u201d wrought upon his people. \u201cAn entire civilian population\u201d, he said, is brought to the \u201cedge of famine\u201d, and aid is then used to lure and confine them to an extremely limited area of the Strip, \u201cclearly to facilitate their expulsion and annexation\u201d.\u00a0Noting the Council\u2019s failure to act, he asked: \u201cYou cannot even say something about that?\u201d<\/p>\n He also questioned whether the Council has anything to say about Israel breaking the fundamental rules of international law, \u201cof basic humanity\u201d. While noting his expectation that the elected members\u2019 minimal demands, \u201cdirected by humanity, by legality, by morality\u201d, would have received unanimous support, he recalled that they were instead met with a veto. Meanwhile, efforts by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to realize a ceasefire have yet to meet success. He asked:\u00a0\u201cDoes that mean Israel can continue its destruction of the Gaza Strip, and all life within it, while the negotiations continue?\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Israel\u2019s representative said: \u201cToday, this Council stood at a crossroads, and most of you chose wrong, you chose appeasement and submission.\u201d\u00a0Nevertheless, he thanked the United States for standing on the right side and refusing to abandon the hostages.\u00a0Israel had accepted multiple versions of the United States-backed proposal, but Hamas has rejected every deal, every offer, every opportunity. Further, he said that the text undermines humanitarian aid, while the new aid-delivery mechanism is operational and \u201cis doing what the old system could not, stopping Hamas from stealing it\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cI listened to all of you,\u201d he said, adding that only a few condemned Hamas. Instead of applying pressure where it belongs, most of the Council is applying it on the country working to bring its people back home. Military pressure works, he emphasized, reaffirming commitment to bringing all hostages home. \u201cDon\u2019t waste more of your time,\u201d he told those present, referring to the\u00a0General Assembly emergency meeting that will be triggered by today\u2019s veto. He added that\u00a0no resolution, no vote, \u201cwill stand in our way\u201d.<\/p>\n On 5 June, the World Health Organization issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n WHO warns that the Gaza Strip\u2019s health system is collapsing, with Nasser Medical Complex, the most important referral hospital left in Gaza, and Al-Amal Hospital at risk of becoming non-functional. There are already no hospitals functioning in the north of Gaza.<\/p>\n Nasser and Amal are the last two functioning public hospitals in Khan Younis, where currently most of the population is living. Without them, people will lose access to critical health services.<\/p>\n While these hospitals have not received orders to evacuate patients or staff, they lie within or just outside the evacuation zone announced on 2 June. Israeli authorities have informed the Ministry of Health that access routes leading to both hospitals will be obstructed. As a result, safe access for new patients and staff will be difficult, if not impossible. If the situation further deteriorates, both hospitals are at high risk of becoming non-functional, due to movement restrictions, insecurity, and the inability of WHO and partners to resupply or transfer patients.<\/p>\n Nasser and Al Amal hospitals are operating above their capacity, while people with life-threatening injuries continue to arrive to seek urgent care amid a dire shortage of essential medicines and medical supplies. The hospitals going out of service would have dire consequences for patients in need of surgical care, intensive care, blood bank and transfusion services, cancer care, and dialysis.<\/p>\n Losing the two hospitals would cut 490 beds, reducing the Gaza Strip\u2019s overall hospital bed availability to less than 1400 hospital beds (40% less hospital beds available in the Gaza Strip than before the start of the conflict), for the entire population of 2 million people.<\/p>\n The relentless and systematic decimation of hospitals in Gaza has been going on for too long. It must end immediately. For over 20 months, health workers, WHO, and partners have managed to keep health services partly running despite extreme conditions. But repeated attacks, escalating hostilities, denial of aid, and restricted access have systematically dismantled the health system.<\/p>\n WHO calls for urgent protection of Nasser Medical Complex and Al-Amal Hospital to ensure they remain accessible, functional and safe from attacks and hostilities. Patients seeking refuge and care to save their lives must not risk losing them trying to reach hospitals. Hospitals must never be militarized or targeted.<\/p>\n WHO calls for the delivery of essential medicines and medical supplies into Gaza to be immediately expedited safely and facilitated through all possible routes.<\/p>\n WHO calls for an immediate and lasting ceasefire.<\/p>\n On 6 June, the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) condemns the Israeli military\u2019s pattern of killings of journalists in Gaza, which remains the deadliest place in the world to be a journalist. In the latest attack on Al Ahli Hospital, Gaza City, in the morning on 5 June, at least 4 journalists were killed and 3 more were injured. This is at least the third instance of journalists apparently targeted and killed at hospitals. An attack on Nasr Medical Complex in Khan Younis on 7 April 2005 killed 2 journalists, and an attack on Al Awda Hospital in An Nuseirat killed 5 journalists on 26 December 2024.<\/p>\n UN Human Rights Office in the OPT is horrified that Israeli military attacks reportedly killed 18 journalists in May 2025 alone. The Office has verified the killing of 227 Palestinian journalists in Gaza since 7 October 2023, including 197 men and 30 women. The apparent targeting of Palestinian journalists in Gaza, combined with the denial by Israel of access of foreign journalists to Gaza for over 18 months, except a few visits controlled by IDF, appear to indicate a deliberate attempt by Israel to limit the flow of information to and from Gaza and prevent reporting on the impact of its attacks and denial of humanitarian assistance. Directing attacks against protected persons such as journalists is a violation of international humanitarian law and also constitutes a war crime.<\/p>\n The attack on Al Ahli Hospital on 5 June came as the Israeli military targeted hospitals that had barely recovered from previous rounds of hostilities. The Israeli military\u2019s conduct of hostilities has pushed the health care system across Gaza to the verge of complete collapse. Operations in North Gaza have put three main hospitals in the governorate out of service, destroying the sole dialysis centre in the north. At the same time, the Israeli displacement orders and intense military operation in Khan Younis are preventing patients from reaching two of the main hospitals in Khan Younis, European and Al Amal Hospitals, and Israeli ground troops are advancing in the vicinity of Nasr Medical Complex, the largest hospital in the south, raising the risk of it also being of it also being forced out of service. Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al Balah was struck three times in the morning on 4 June.<\/p>\n The coordinated, repeated and extensive attacks on hospitals, which are specially protected facilities under international humanitarian law, and the deprivation of health and medicate care to those in desperate need, further indicate a complete indifference towards civilian lives and suffering and raise concerns of an intentional disregard by Israel of its obligation to respect and protect civilians.<\/p>\n On 7 June, United Nations Development Programme\u2019s Administrator Achim Steiner issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n I am deeply saddened by the tragic killing of our UNDP colleague, Ramzi Khader (47), his wife, their six children, and members of his extended family in Gaza yesterday. An Israeli airstrike on his family home in Jabalia in northern Gaza killed him and reportedly more than 36 members of his extended family. He is survived by his son, with whom we have been in touch to offer our support.<\/p>\n Ramzi joined UNDP\u2019s Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People (UNDP\/PAPP) in May 2004 as an Area Manager and served as a Programme Portfolio Associate in Gaza. Throughout his 21 years of service, and even under the most difficult circumstances since the onset of the war, Ramzi remained deeply committed to supporting the Palestinian people and advancing UNDP\u2019s mandate on the ground.<\/p>\n Ramzi was a special colleague and a treasured friend. He was most caring, courageous and compassionate. He had a brilliant mind, finding solutions for any challenge. He kept us honest and true, with his strong principles and ethical values. He remained on his land, in his family home, despite all that he endured. He was deeply respected, admired, and loved by those who worked with him.<\/p>\n The loss of Ramzi and his family has devastated our team. UN staff and civilians in Gaza are not, and must never be, targets. The protection of civilians and humanitarian personnel must be upheld in accordance with international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n This war must end. A ceasefire is urgently needed to prevent further atrocities. No family should have to endure the heartbreak and suffering that Ramzi\u2019s loved ones, and so many others in Gaza, continue to face.<\/p>\n On behalf of UNDP, I extend my deepest condolences to Ramzi\u2019s family, his loved ones, our colleagues at UNDP\/PAPP, and all those who had the honour of working alongside him.<\/p>\n On 10 June, the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs shared the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n OCHA warns that hostilities and hunger continue to fuel desperation among more than 2 million people in\u00a0Gaza\u00a0who are being denied the basics necessary for their survival, amid reports of ongoing Israeli military operations.<\/p>\n Between 5 and 8 June, 15 attacks were reported on residential buildings and tents sheltering displaced people across Gaza, killing tens of Palestinians and injuring others.<\/p>\n In northern Gaza, Israeli military operations have intensified in recent days, with mass casualties reported. On 7 June, the Palestinian Civil Defence reported 30 fatalities, including women and children, in an air strike on a residential building in Gaza city.<\/p>\n Hungry and displaced people have also reportedly been killed while risking their lives to access food at militarized distribution hubs.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, four new displacement orders have been issued by the Israeli authorities for northern areas of Gaza since 6 June. The last of these was said to be in response to reported Palestinian rocket fire into Israel. Combined, they cover about 8 square kilometres but largely overlap with previously issued orders.<\/p>\n OCHA underscores that civilians must be protected, including those fleeing and forced to leave through displacement orders and those who remain despite those orders.\u202fCivilians who flee must be allowed to return as soon as circumstances allow. OCHA reiterates that civilians must be able to receive the humanitarian assistance they need, wherever they are. All of this is required by international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n Yesterday, some supplies, mainly flour, were collected from Kerem Shalom crossing. The aid was bound for Gaza city but was taken directly from the trucks by hungry and desperate people who have now endured months of deprivation.<\/p>\n Separately, there have also been some instances of violent looting and attacks on truck drivers, which are completely unacceptable. OCHA reiterates that Israel, as the occupying power, bears responsibility with regards to public order and safety in Gaza. That should include letting in far more essential supplies, through multiple crossings and routes, to meet humanitarian needs and help reduce looting.<\/p>\n Today, additional supplies have been sent to Kerem Shalom, and humanitarian partners continue their efforts to pick up supplies when they are allowed access by the Israeli authorities.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Israeli authorities continue to deny many humanitarian movements within the Strip to provide whatever limited services available to the population. Yesterday, they rejected 11 out of 18 attempts by the UN to coordinate such movements. These included trucking water, retrieving fuel, carrying out a rescue mission in Khan Younis, and repairing roads.<\/p>\n West Bank: Northern areas affected by Israeli operations<\/strong><\/p>\n OCHA says Israeli forces\u2019 operations in northern areas of the West Bank continue to be reported.<\/p>\n Today at around midnight, Israeli forces launched an operation in Nablus city, focusing on the Old City. They imposed a curfew, conducted house-to-house searches, and reportedly used a school as an interrogation centre. At least 20 homes have been searched, with reports of damage to property.<\/p>\n Yesterday in Jenin, the Israeli authorities announced an imminent plan to demolish nearly 96 structures, most of them residential, in Jenin camp. More than 280 families who stand to be affected have been given 72 hours to retrieve their personal belongings.<\/p>\n In Tulkarm, Israeli operations have intensified in its camps, Tulkarm and Nur Shams, since 6 June, coinciding with Eid al Adha. The forces have implemented demolition orders for 58 structures. More than three dozen buildings have been demolished so far, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, with destruction extending beyond the original orders issued at the start of the month.<\/p>\n There is a heavy presence of military forces remaining at both camps. On 7 June, Israeli forces reportedly shot and injured a Palestinian man in Nur Shams. Israeli forces have also operated in parts of Tulkarm city, taking over buildings and using them as military posts.<\/p>\n On 10 June, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and in Israel, issued the following <\/em>press release<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Israel has obliterated Gaza\u2019s education system and destroyed\u00a0over half of all religious and cultural sites in the Gaza Strip, part of a\u00a0widespread and relentless assault against the Palestinian people in which Israeli forces have committed war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel, said in a new\u00a0report<\/em><\/a>\u00a0today.<\/p>\n While the Commission paid special attention to the situation in Gaza, the report focuses on attacks in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as a whole, and in Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are seeing more and more indications that Israel is carrying out a concerted campaign to obliterate Palestinian life in Gaza,\u201d\u00a0said Navi\u00a0Pillay, Chair of the Commission. \u201cIsrael\u2019s targeting of the educational, cultural and religious life of the Palestinian people will harm the present generations and generations to come, hindering their right to self-determination.\u201d<\/p>\n The Commission found that\u00a0Israel used airstrikes, shelling, burning and controlled demolitions to damage and destroy more than\u00a090 percent of the school and university buildings in Gaza, creating conditions where education for children, including adolescents,\u00a0and the livelihood of teachers\u00a0have been made impossible. Over 658,000 children in Gaza have had no schooling for 20 months.<\/p>\n Israeli forces committed war crimes, including directing attacks against civilians and wilful killing, in their attacks on\u00a0educational facilities\u00a0that caused civilian casualties. In killing civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites, Israeli security forces committed the crime against humanity of extermination.<\/p>\n The Commission documented and investigated several cases of burning and demolition of educational facilities by Israeli forces which it concluded were deliberate and unnecessary. Israeli soldiers recorded and distributed videos in which they mock Palestinians and Palestinian education, before destroying schools and universities. The Commission considers such acts as indicative of the Israeli security forces\u2019 intent to destroy these facilities to curtail Palestinians\u2019 access to education in the long-term.<\/p>\n The Commission also found significant evidence that Israeli security forces seized and used educational facilities as military bases or staging areas for military activity, including transforming a part of the Al-Azhar university\u2019s Al-Mughraqa campus to function as a synagogue for the troops. The Commission found one instance where the military wing of Hamas had also used a school for military purposes. Such conduct violates the provision of customary international humanitarian law that requires parties to a conflict to distinguish between civilian objects and military objectives.<\/p>\n In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the education system has suffered from increasing military operations by Israeli security forces, the harassment of students, and an increase in checkpoints, demolitions and settler attacks which have affected more than 806,000 Palestinian students. Israel has done little to prevent or prosecute settlers who have intentionally targeted educational facilities and students to terrorise communities and force them to leave their homes.<\/p>\n Israeli authorities have also targeted Israeli and Palestinian educational personnel and students inside Israel who expressed concern or solidarity with the civilian population in Gaza, resulting in their harassment, dismissal or suspension and in some cases humiliating arrests and detention. Israeli authorities have particularly targeted female educators and students, intending to deter women and girls from activism in public places.<\/p>\n \u201cChildren in Gaza have lost their childhood. With no education available, they are forced to worry about survival amid attacks, uncertainty, starvation and subhuman living conditions,\u201d said Pillay. \u201cWhat is particularly disturbing is the widespread nature of the targeting of educational facilities, which has extended well beyond Gaza, impacting all Palestinian children.\u201d<\/p>\n Attacks by Israeli security forces have damaged more than half of all religious and cultural sites in the Gaza Strip, part of a wider campaign to destroy civilian targets and infrastructure through airstrikes and shelling. Israeli attacks also targeted religious sites that served as places of refuge, killing hundreds of people, including women and children. The Commission concluded that Israeli security forces knew or should have known the locations and significance of Gaza\u2019s prominent cultural sites and should have planned all military operations to ensure no harm.<\/p>\n All ten religious and cultural sites in Gaza investigated by the Commission constituted civilian objects at the time of attack and suffered devastating destruction for which the Commission could not identify a legitimate military need. Artefacts were destroyed, removed or looted.<\/p>\n In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the Commission found that Israeli authorities have appropriated, developed and profited from cultural heritage sites representing Palestinian, Jewish and other cultures, displaced Palestinian residents from those sites, and blocked or severely restricted Palestinians from accessing such sites.<\/p>\n In East Jerusalem, frequent militarised incursions, arrests and harassment against worshippers and religious figures in Haram al-Sharif\/Temple Mount have resulted in severe restrictions of freedom of worship and, on several occasions, ignition of wider conflict. Israeli authorities limited access of Palestinian worshippers to the site while allowing increased access of Jewish worshippers. The Commission emphasises that, while some actions by Israeli security forces at the site may have been linked to security justifications, these should be considered within the broader context of Israel\u2019s illegal occupation, settlement activity and support to settlers, and the erosion of the status quo. Israel\u2019s actions are governed by the law of occupation, the occupying power\u2019s obligation to ensure public order and safety, and international human rights law regarding the use of force, which must be necessary and proportionate.<\/p>\n \u201cAttacks on cultural and religious sites have deeply impacted intangible culture, such as religious and cultural practices, memories and history,\u201d said Pillay. \u201cThe targeting and destruction of heritage sites, the limiting of access to those sites in the West Bank and the erasure of their heterogenic history erode Palestinians\u2019 historical ties to the land and weaken their collective identity.\u201d<\/p>\n In its recommendations, the Commission urges the Government of Israel to immediately end attacks targeting cultural, religious and education institutions and seizure and military use of such institutions; immediately end its unlawful occupation of Palestinian territory and cease all settlement plans and activities, including those conducted in or endangering religious and cultural sites; and comply fully with the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.<\/p>\n The Commission calls on the Government of the State of Palestine to ensure the protection, preservation and development of cultural heritage sites, including those representing non-Palestinian heritage, and to safeguard artefacts. The Commission calls on the de-facto authorities in Gaza to cease using civilian objects for military purposes.<\/p>\n To learn more about the Special Procedures of the UN Human Rights Council and the Question of Palestine, click here to visit the dedicated webpage on UNISPAL.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n On 10 June, the United Nations World Food Programme issued the following <\/em>statement<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Overnight, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) dispatched 59 trucks carrying life-saving food assistance intended for northern Gaza. The aid convoy, transporting 930 metric tons of wheat flour, was stopped along the way and offloaded by hungry civilians in critical need of food to feed their families. Community responses of relief, gratitude and urgent pleas for more trucks reinforce the desperation of the situation.<\/p>\n A second aid convoy with 21 trucks of food aid intended for southern Gaza was delayed and waited for clearances to move for over 36 hours.<\/p>\n Since the limited resumption of humanitarian assistance into Gaza on 19 May, WFP has only been able to bring in small amounts of life-saving food and aid. This is largely due to delays or denials of permission for humanitarian movements due to expanded military operations.<\/p>\n As of 10 June, almost three weeks after limited supplies were allowed to enter Gaza, WFP has transported over 700 trucks of aid to the Kerem Shalom border crossing point. This compares to 600-700 trucks of aid transported per day during the ceasefire earlier this year. The trucks carried over 11,000 metric tons of food but only 6,000 metric tons has entered Gaza, enough to support less than 300,000 people for a month with minimal daily food requirements. This is a small fraction of what is needed for a population of 2.1 million people and far too slow to meet the overwhelming needs.<\/p>\n To stave off starvation, stabilize markets and calm desperation, we need to consistently support the entire population with basic food requirements every month.<\/p>\n After nearly 80 days of a total blockade of aid, and a trickle of assistance since the reopening, the fear of starvation inside Gaza remains high.<\/p>\n For the trucks and drivers inside Gaza, insecurity and the breakdown in law and order also pose concerns. Some trucks have been looted by armed gangs,\u00a0injuring drivers and damaging trucks.<\/p>\n WFP continues to call for better operating conditions so that food can reach families consistently, fairly, and safely, wherever they are across the Gaza Strip. This means more safe and reliable convoy routes, faster permission approvals and additional border crossings open for use.<\/p>\n This is the only way to reassure the population and to push back starvation.<\/p>\n WFP has over 140,000 metric tons of food\u2013\u2013enough to feed the entire population of 2.2 million Gazans for two months, within and on its way to the region.<\/p>\n The food aid brought into Gaza during the ceasefire helped to push back the tide of hunger. We can do this again.<\/p>\n Another ceasefire is urgently needed and is the only way to reach all people safely across Gaza with life-saving assistance.<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n<\/a>I. UNRWA Commissioner-General: Aid distribution has become a death trap<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>II. OHCHR: Israeli military kills 32 Palestinians seeking food aid as \u2018militarized humanitarian mechanism\u2019 deepens crisis<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>III. UN Register of Damage Caused by the Construction of the Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory issues a new report<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n
\n<\/a>IV. OCHA: Mass casualties reported in Gaza as hostilities continue<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>V. UN Secretary-General appalled by reports of Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VI. UN Relief Chief: \u201cNo one should have to risk their life to feed their children\u201d in Gaza.<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VII. Security Council fails to adopt resolution calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, as a result of a veto by the United States\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>VIII. WHO calls for urgent protection of Nasser Medical Complex and Al-Amal Hospital in the Gaza Strip<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>IX. UN Human Rights Office condemns targeting journalists and attacks on hospitals<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>X. UNDP staff member and his family killed in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XI. OCHA: Hostilities, hunger deepen civilians\u2019 suffering in Gaza<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XII. Israeli attacks on educational, religious and cultural sites in the Occupied Palestinian Territory amount to war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination, UN Commission says<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XIII. WFP warns of starvation risk in Gaza amid aid delays and insecurity<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>XIV. General Assembly adopts resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire, to be respected by all parties\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n