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UNRWA Situation Report #66 on the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem (All information from 16-17 January 2024, is valid as of 17 January 2024 at 22:30)

UNRWA

19 Jan 2024

Key Points

The Gaza Strip

• As of 17 January 2024, the total number of UNRWA colleagues killed since the beginning of hostilities is 151.

• According to OCHA, telecommunication services in Gaza remain shut down for a fifth consecutive day. Significant disruption of telecommunication services prevents people in Gaza from accessing life-saving information or calling for first responders, and continues to impede humanitarian response.

• The Ministry of Health has announced that hepatitis A infection is spreading across informal camps due to overcrowding and lack of clean water and proper sanitation. UNRWA continues to monitor the situation, with suspected cases almost 16 times higher in January so far compared to the whole of November 2023. The massive increase reflects Gaza's worsening living conditions, particularly shortage of safe water and inadequate sanitation and hygiene. In shelters, there on average only 1.6L drinking water per person is delivered per day and toilets and showers are shared by hundreds and thousands of IDPs.

• As of 18 January, up to 1.7 million* people (over 75 per cent of the population**) have been displaced across the Gaza Strip, some multiple times***. Families are forced to move repeatedly in search of safety. Following intense Israeli bombardments and fighting in Khan Younis and the Middle Areas in recent days, a significant number of displaced people have moved again further south.

*This includes 1 million individuals residing in or near emergency shelters or informal shelters. As of October 12, approximately 160,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) were recorded in north Gaza and Gaza governorates. The ability of UNRWA to provide humanitarian support and updated data in these areas has been severely restricted. The ongoing hostilities, evacuation orders issued by Israeli Forces, and the constant need for safer locations have resulted in people being displaced multiple times.

**UNRWA has reported in Situation Report 64 that up to 1.9 million IDPs are either residing in 154 UNRWA shelters or near these shelters. Due to the continued escalation of fighting and evacuation orders, some households have moved away from the shelters where they were initially registered.

*** There are instances where the same IDPs are registered in multiple shelters due to the fluid movement of populations; hereafter, estimates are used for these shelters. UNRWA plans to conduct a more accurate count of IDPs in shelters, including informal shelters, as soon as the security situation allows.

The West Bank, including East Jerusalem

On 16 and 17 January the following Israeli Security Forces (ISF) search and arrest operations occurred:

Continuation of search and arrest operations in Tulkarm city, Tulkarm camp and Nur Shams refugee camp, northern West Bank. Early morning on 17 January in Tulkarm refugee camp, four Palestinians were killed and two were injured with live ammunition during an exchange of fire. At the northern entrance of the camp, infrastructure and property within the camp was damaged by exchanges of fire and use of ISF bulldozers. Five Palestinians were detained and one ISF soldier was reported injured during the clashes. In the late afternoon, ISF reportedly fired a missile towards Palestinian houses in the camp, resulting in property damage. One Palestinian woman was injured. ISF also detained five paramedics from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. On the same day in the late evening ISF closed all entrances to the camp with earth mounds. Exchanges of fire were also reported in Tulkarm city and Nur Shams refugee camp. On the morning of 16 January, ISF reportedly rammed a Palestinian vehicle on Nablus Street in Tulkarm city, and then detained the four Palestinians who were inside following an interrogation. In the evening, ISF reportedly opened fire at another Palestinian vehicle in Izbat Al Jarad, killing one Palestinian and injuring two, including a child. Both Tulkarm and Nur Sams refugee camps have been undergoing heavy destruction and dozens of Palestinians have been arrested. UNRWA operations have been severally impacted and are currently suspended. Due to the security situation, the Palestinian Education Directorate suspended operations in the city switching all schools to e-learning. Overnight between 15 and 16 January, 14 Palestinians were detained in Idha, southern West Bank. On 16 January, ISF reportedly demolished several commercial structures and barracks, and confiscated Palestinian vehicles. Clashes between ISF and Palestinians were also reported during search and arrests operations in Nablus, Balata Camp and Askar Camp, northern West Bank. On 16 January, ISF conducted a search and arrest operation in Nablus, injuring one Palestinian and detaining another. Early morning on 17 January, ISF conducted search and arrest operations in Balata and Askar Camps, through these exchanges, ISF reportedly fired a rocket towards a vehicle near Balata Camp killing three Palestinians. On 16 January, ISF injured six Palestinians and detained 40 Palestinians workers originally from the Gaza Strip during a search and arrest operation in Qalqilya, northern West Bank. On 16 January, clashes between ISF and Palestinians were reported in Hussan, southern West Bank. ISF reportedly fired live ammunition in Al Martina area at the easter entrance of the city, and completely closed the area, as well as the center of the village, forcing Palestinians to close their shops.