DRA Gaza Crisis 2023

A new escalation of violence is currently unfolding after rockets fired and an incursion into Israel by Palestinian armed groups in Gaza in the early hours of the 7th of October. The operation has been claimed by De Facto Authorities as a response to recent Israeli military operations in the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and increased settler violence in the West Bank. Following a declaration of war by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel cut off electricity supply to Gaza on the evening of 7th October and has launched a bombardment of retaliatory air strikes on the strip, after warning besieged Gazans to leave the city. Israeli Defense Forces have mobilized dozens of tanks to southern Israel, where they remain engaged in a firefight with Hamas militants who are said to have rearmed in Ashkelon and other areas. Hamas has continued to launch rockets into Israel, hitting the city of Sderot. The Israeli military said fighting was underway in seven border communities and an army base. Hundreds of civilians have been killed in Israel and Gaza. As of 9th October, UNOCHA's third flash update indicates that at least 687 Palestinians have been killed and more than 3800 injured and 900 Israelis have been killed and a further 2,616 injured. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health at least 73 children in Gaza have been killed so far. At the time of writing, the number of Israeli children killed had not been confirmed. With continued hostilities, those numbers are expected to rise in both the oPt and Israel, including among children. Hostilities so far have included airstrikes in densely populated areas of Gaza and indiscriminate firing of rockets into civilian areas inside Israel, with reported damage and destruction of civilian objects including houses, hospitals, schools and ambulances. Food security in Gaza has deteriorated over the last years with 63 per cent of people in the Gaza Strip being food insecure and dependent on international assistance. In addition, with 81.5 per cent of the population living in poverty, an overall unemployment rate of 46.6 per cent (48.1 per cent for Palestine Refugees living in the camps) at the end of the third quarter of 2022 and an unemployment rate of 62.3 per cent among youth (15-29 years, refugees and non-refugees), the already fragile humanitarian situation in Gaza threatens to deteriorate further because of this escalation.