Gaza aid operations faced significant disruptions as families began preparing for a fourth winter living in tents and makeshift shelters. Transport activities were halted on Tuesday due to the closure of the critical Kerem Shalom crossing for election day, compounding obstacles for United Nations delivery efforts. The UN project services agency reported multiple incidents over three consecutive days, including close-proximity explosions, detained drivers, and small-arms fire striking a guesthouse. Executive Director Jorge Moreira da Silva emphasized that personnel safety has been compromised repeatedly and urged all sides to protect civilians and aid workers. Despite ongoing funding shortfalls and strict entry barriers, UN teams managed to deliver limited supplies earlier in the week, including food, blankets, winter clothes, school items, and fuel.
Winter shelter crisis and West Bank violence
A recent shelter assessment revealed that approximately 950,000 displaced individuals reside in sites facing medium to high flood risks, with current supply stocks remaining inadequate against cold weather, wind, and rain. Meanwhile, Secretary-General António Guterres voiced deep alarm regarding escalating violence in the West Bank driven by an ongoing Israeli military offensive in Hebron. Associate Spokesperson Daniela Gross noted that the UN chief strongly opposes settler attacks and condemns the regional violence. Data from the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, indicated that between January 2025 and late September 2026, 331 Palestinians were killed alongside 21 Israelis in the West Bank, while over 42,000 Palestinians were displaced. Furthermore, OCHA documented 3,684 settler attacks resulting in casualties or property damage during this timeframe, while Volker Türk warned that aggressive operations in Hebron raise concerns of ethnic cleansing as displaced figures surpass 3,000.
Impact on journalists and media infrastructure
Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, delivered a virtual media briefing regarding her latest report. Prevented from attending in person due to United States sanctions, she reported that nearly 300 media workers and journalists have been killed in Gaza based on UN sources, while over 100 have experienced detention and torture. Approximately 150 media centers and offices, representing 80 percent of Gaza media infrastructure, have been destroyed, alongside more than 139 recorded attacks on journalists in the West Bank. She criticized the ban on foreign journalists entering Gaza, the lack of accountability in the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, and also documented intimidation of Palestinian journalists by Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.
Source: Cosmo News Desk
