Emergency Manager's Weekly Report

Jan 235 min read

Israel/Hamas War Situation Report #32

Military and Diplomatic Highlights:

· The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on January 19th reported that a senior member of Islamic Jihad was eliminated during an airstrike.

· The IDF reported the following activities on January 21st:

o In Khan Yunis IDF snipers along with fighter jets eliminated several terrorists and a large quantity of weapons was discovered.

o IDF soldiers killed 15 terrorists in Daraj Tuffah.

· On January 23rd, Israeli fighter jets completed a series of strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. These targets included:

o A military asset operated by Iranian forces.

o Military compound used by Hezbollah.

· The IDF also announced that 21 soldiers were killed in action on January 22nd:

o The troops were operating in eastern Gaza near Khan Younis.

o They were operating to remove structures and terrorist infrastructure.

o A Rocket Propelled Grenade missile was fired by Hamas fighters toward a IDF tank. Simultaneously, there was an explosion which resulted in the collapse of two structures while many troops were either inside or nearby.

Civil Protection and Humanitarian Assistance Highlights:

· The UN Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is reporting the following:

o As of January 20th, there are up to 1.7 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) (over 75% of the population).

o At least one million people are residing in or near emergency shelters or informal shelters.

o 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.

o 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.

o There are also instances where the same IDPs are registered in multiple shelters due to the fluid movement of populations. Going forward though UNRWA plans to conduct a more accurate count of IDPs in shelters, including informal shelters as soon as the security situation allows.

· On January 22nd, 66 truckloads of food, medicine and other supplies entered the Gaza Strip through Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings.

· The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that three in every four humanitarian missions to areas north of Wadi Gaza were denied access by Israeli forces.

· Healthcare and Public Health Update:

o The 16 hospitals that are still partially functional include nine in the south and seven in the north:

ü The nine partially functional hospitals in the south are operating at three times their capacity, while facing critical shortages of basic supplies and fuel.

ü In Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, three hospitals (Al Aqsa, Nasser, and Gaza European) are at risk of closure due to the issuance of evacuation orders in adjacent areas and the ongoing conduct of hostilities nearby.

ü This is an increase of one more hospital in the north (Kamal Adwan), which has been functioning again to some degree since mid-January.

o Personnel Shortages:

ü Only 12 medical doctors are still working at Al Aqsa hospital, which is about 10% of the doctors who normally work at the hospital.

ü Nasser Hospital has experienced a significant decrease in staff and patient numbers, as over 50% of staff have left and only 400 out of 750 patients remain at the hospital.

o Communicable diseases are on the rise in Gaza:

ü More than 223,000 cases of acute respiratory infections (affecting 10% of the population).

ü 158,000+ cases of diarrhea (of which 53% are children under five).

ü 7,500+ cases of acute jaundice (several of these acute cases have been confirmed as Hepatitis A).

o The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has established a field medical post in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Yunis, with the goal of accelerating medical services for the wounded.

o The PRCS is experiencing ongoing challenges for ambulances accessing the Al-Naser and Al-Amal hospitals because of Israeli targeting the surrounding areas.

· Food Security Update:

o As of January 21st, OCHA reports that 15 bakeries are operational in Gaza, but none of them are in Northern or Central Gaza.

o UNRWA is continuing to distribute flour in Southern Gaza. At least 320,000 people have been reached as of January 23rd.

o UNRWA partners are also distributing:

ü Protein Based Food

ü High Energy Biscuits

ü Dairy Items

ü Other Food Items (Dates, Cake and Juice)

· Potable Water Update:

o Water availability through the municipal wells is presently at 21,200 cubic meters a day, which is tenth of their production capacity of 255,000 cubic meters a day prior to the escalation of hostilities:

ü Water from these wells is known to be substandard given it is brackish (salty), whereas water from the Israeli-operated lines yielded the optimal safe drinking water prior to the hostilities.

o At present, only one of the three Israeli lines (the Bani Sa’id point) is functional, yielding 22,000 cubic meters a day, which is less than half of what would have been available if all lines were working.

o Water availability through the short-term desalination plants presently stands at 1,600 cubic meters per day, which is 7% of the pre-crisis capacity of 22,000 cubic meters per day:

ü Due to import restrictions on critical items, water testing kits and chlorine to treat the water across Gaza are presently unavailable.

· Telecommunications Update:

o Since January 19th, mobile phone communication has been gradually restored to most of Gaza, except for some services in the north.

o The Internet remains down across all of Gaza.

Violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Highlights:

· The World Health Organization (WHO) is reporting that 25,000 people have been killed in Gaza.

· WHO has also verified more than 300 attacks on healthcare.

· The PRCS reported on January 22nd that the fourth floor of their ambulance headquarters in Khan Younis was struck by Israeli artillery shelling and gunfire from Israeli drones. Several IDPs were injured.

· UNRWA reported that one of their largest shelters in Khan Younis was hit. At least six IDPs were killed.

Sources:

· Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #99

· UNRWA Situation Report #67 on the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem (All information from 18-20 January 2024, is valid as of 20 January 2024 at 22:30)

· Israeli Defense Forces Twitter Page

· ECHO Twitter Page

· Palestine Red Crescent Society Twitter Page

· OCHA Occupied Territories Twitter Page

· UN Agency for Palestine Refugees Twitter Page

· WHO Occupied Territories Twitter Page

Resources

ADL, We Stand with Israel Website