United Nations: Israeli raids displaced more than 52 thousand Palestinians in Gaza

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said today, Tuesday, that the Israeli air strikes have displaced more than 52,000 Palestinians and destroyed or severely damaged some 450 buildings in the Gaza Strip.

OCHA spokesman Jens Larquet told reporters that about 47,000 displaced people have taken refuge in 58 UN-run schools in Gaza.

He added that 132 buildings were destroyed and 316 buildings were severely damaged, including 6 hospitals and 9 primary health care centers, as well as a water desalination plant that provides drinking water for 250,000 people.

OCHA said it welcomes Israel to open one border crossing for humanitarian supplies, but has also called for another crossing.

For her part, the WHO spokeswoman said that there is a severe shortage of medical supplies, and also the risk of water-borne diseases, in addition to the spread of the Corona epidemic.

For its part, Amnesty International called for an investigation into the air strikes carried out by the occupation on residential buildings in Gaza, saying that they amount to “war crimes or crimes against humanity.”

Since last April, the situation in the Palestinian territories has exploded as a result of brutal attacks committed by the Israeli police and settlers in Jerusalem, the Al-Aqsa Mosque and its environs, and the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, following Israeli efforts to evacuate 12 Palestinian homes and hand them over to settlers.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, the number of victims of the Israeli aggression on Gaza has increased since May 10 to 212, including 61 children and 36 women, and about 1,400 people have been wounded.