Humanitarian workers have warned that children’s sense of stability and security has been eroded with the collapse of key daily services, and humanitarian workers insist that… Gaza’s youth will need ‘sustained and long-term recovery efforts’.
According to Child Safety Partners assessments conducted in September, shared by the UN Office for the Coordination of Aid (OCHA), 93 percent showed aggressive behavior and 90 percent were violent toward younger children.
Sadness and withdrawal are nearly common (86%), along with disturbed sleep (79%) and school refusal (69%).
Violence every day
Although the fragile ceasefire has held, deadly violence and insecurity have not completely ended, with Israeli military strikes occurring near or east of the so-called “yellow line.”
This is where the Israeli military remains deployed, reaching more than 50 percent of the Gaza Strip, OCHA said.
In an update, the UN aid office noted that access to the sea remains prohibited; It also referred to reports that Israeli forces are still detaining Palestinian fishermen at sea.
“In areas outside the “yellow line”…Daily explosions of residential buildings continue to be reported, and access to humanitarian assets, public infrastructure and agricultural land remains restricted or completely blocked.“OCHA update indicates.
Millions are still homeless
Of Gaza’s population of 2.1 million, about 1 million live in 862 displacement sites today.
More than half of these sites are located in the far south of the city of Khan Yunis, 264 sites in Deir al-Balah, 180 sites in the Gaza and North Gaza governorates, and eight sites in Rafah.
Many camps are overcrowded, increasing the risks facing girls and children – especially those with disabilities who are at risk of violence, neglect and dangerous access to water, sanitation and hygiene facilities.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, said that about 75,000 people live in about 100 of the shelters designated for it and the surrounding areas.
High anxiety
UN aid partners providing assistance to young people report experiencing increased anxiety, behavioral changes and growing concern about the ongoing lack of safe spaces.
In the four weeks following the agreed-upon cessation of fighting, humanitarian partners provided child protection services to more than 132,000 children across the Gaza Strip. This includes nearly 1,600 children with disabilities and 45,000 caregivers, OCHA said.
Help included individual psychological counselling, group sessions, stress management activities, recreational psychosocial support, and referrals for further help.
The goal is to reach more than 100,000 children every month To meet the needs of nearly one million children in the Gaza Strip.
This development comes at a time when the Israeli authorities announced the reopening of the Zikim crossing after it was closed for eight weeks.
OCHA said the crossing links Israel and northern Gaza and will be reopened for humanitarian goods. In recent weeks, the UN has repaired the road to Zikim inside Gaza in preparation for its reopening, and is now carrying out final checks – including potential explosive hazards – to enable the resumption of collection of goods.
