Jeddah: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Media Observatory for Israel’s Crimes against Palestinians has warned that Gaza Strip has reached a highly critical stage since mid-June 2024, most severe compared to previous months.
The OIC Observatory has highlighted three significant factors contributing to Gaza’s current dire humanitarian situation: the ongoing aggression by Israeli forces against Gaza Strip, with complete control over the region and continuous military operations; extensive destruction of around 70% of Gaza’s urban infrastructure, including vital water and sanitation networks, and roads, along with severe damage to the healthcare sector, which made most areas of Gaza unviable; limited entry of humanitarian aid, fuel, and water, which exacerbates the sector’s challenges, hindering any potential recovery and intensifying the devastating effects of the existing humanitarian crises.
Moreover, “it became clear from the daily statistics of the numbers of murdered and wounded and the ta
rgeting areas that Israel seeks to turn this hell into a daily reality in the Gaza Strip that does not foretell an imminent end to it, and that direct murdering constitutes part of a harsher collective punishment”, the OIC Observatory stated.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, after nearly nine months of continuous war, 67% of the water and sanitation facilities in Gaza Strip have been destroyed. This widespread destruction has resulted in the spread of infectious diseases, particularly during the hot summer months, along with contamination of drinking water. The Khan Yunis municipality, for example, has confirmed the destruction of 170-200 kilometers of water networks.
The problem of drinking water in Gaza coincides with the starvation of its population by preventing the entry of goods and humanitarian aid; Palestinians warned that 3,500 children were at risk of starvation. The lack of regular vaccinations and medicines further compounds the crisis. Accordi
ng to “Save the Children” organization, Israeli military operations have resulted in the tragic death of 21,000 children in the region.
Furthermore, according to OIC Media Observatory, in the period between June 18 and 24, 2024, 265 Palestinians were murdered and 680 were injured. From October 7, 2023, to June 23, 2024, 38,151 Palestinians were murdered, and 91,232 were injured.
In the West Bank, five Palestinians were murdered by Israeli forces, which also arrested 212 Palestinians, while the number of attacks by Israeli settlers on cities, towns and villages in the West Bank reached 33, including raids on two mosques in Jericho and Hebron, and raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem.
The OIC Observatory also highlighted the fact that settlers carried out settlement activities in repeated attempts to establish settlement outposts in Hebron and Nablus, graze their sheep on Palestinian agricultural lands, burn other lands, destroy greenhouses in Nablus, Salfit, Tulkarm, and Hebron, and steal sheep fro
m Palestinian barns, in addition to trying to obstruct aid convoys coming from Jordan to Gaza Strip.
During the aforementioned period, Israeli committed 1,576 crimes and violations against Palestinians.
Source: Saudi Press Agency