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STORY: UN / GAZA OPT HUMANITARIAN
TRT: 4:46
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 13 NOVEMBER 2023, NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, UN flag half-mast
2. Wide shot, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“In Gaza fighting around Al Shifa Hospital intensified over the weekend, and the Al Shifa hospital’s critical infrastructure were damaged including water tanks, oxygen stations, the cardiovascular facility in the maternity ward. Three nurses were also reported killed. Many of the people that were in the hospital have fled or tried to flee. Some remain behind, it is very difficult for us to establish how many are still in the premises.”
4. Wide shot, press briefing room
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“Lives in Gaza are hanging by a thread due to depleting of fuel and medical supplies. We hear that patients are already dying and we have been reported few cases. Also access to water and food has become more and more difficult for those remaining and we are trying to figure out better how many have remained behind but is of course a little bit complicated given the inability of our teams to go in the north of the Gaza Strip.”
6. Wide shot, press briefing room
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“OCHA teams have been observing the movement of 10,000 people to the south, following the calls by the Israeli forces to vacate the north. People arrive by foot primarily thirsty, exhausted, and often with no concrete idea on where they will be staying. Some local NGOs have been supporting those who arrives with water and biscuits and give a little bit of assistance and try to provide them information where they could eventually reach a shelter although the choices are very limited.”
8. Wide shot, press briefing room
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“In terms of trucks coming from Egypt, yesterday we reported 76 truck of food, medicines, health supplies, bottle of water, blankets, tents and hygiene products. These bring the overall number to around I think 980, but the assistant remain far far away from what we need. The delivery at night and arrival of a night of trucks is also very complicated because it exposed the teams to danger and risk and we had already a couple of incidents that were very concerning.”
10. Wide shot, press briefing room
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“And actually instead of a much needed increase of this assistance, we have been informed by the colleagues of UNWRA that due to the lack of fuel, as of tomorrow the operations of the receiving trucks will be no longer be possible.”
12. Wide shot, press briefing room
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“UNWRA’s guesthouse in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip also sustained significant damage from Israeli forces neighbor strikes. UN international staff present in Rafah left the building just 90 minutes before the strikes. We have of course, engaged with the Israeli to understand the circumstances but three different shots were hit in the house. So it seems a little bit problematic in our view.”
14. Wide shot, press briefing room
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“Operational condition in general is deteriorating by the hour. We have no fuel, no comms, and no guarantee of respecting UN premises or in any case notify premises, which is of course, reducing progressively our ability to operate.”
16. Wide shot, press briefing room
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“All together the humanitarian community, we support the Secretary-General call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, which of course means that the agreement with all the parties. We requested and support the unconditional release of all hostages and the facilitation of aid delivery wherever people are in need.”
18. Wide shot, press briefing room
19. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea De Domenico, Head of Office, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT):
“In particular, we call everybody to respect hospitals. IHLs (International Humanitarian Law) specifically protect hospitals and medical personnel. Hospitals must not be made places of warfare. Any military operation around or within a hospital must take steps to spare and protect the patients, medical staff and other civilians. And all feasible precautions must be taken including the effective warnings which consider the ability of patients medical staff and other civilians to evacuate safely, which is the biggest challenge that we have at the moment because we have many patients and personnel that refuse to abandon those patients that cannot move.”
20. Wide shot, press briefing room
The head of the UN humanitarian affairs office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Andrea De Domenico, said that fighting around Al Shifa Hospital intensified over the weekend, adding that "the hospital’s critical infrastructure were damaged including water tanks, oxygen stations, the cardiovascular facility in the maternity ward. Three nurses were also reported killed.”
Speaking to reporters today (13 Nov) via video link from Jerusalem, De Domenico said, “Lives in Gaza are hanging by a thread due to depleting of fuel and medical supplies.”
He added, “we hear that patients are already dying and we have been reported few cases. Also access to water and food has become more and more difficult for those remaining and we are trying to figure out better how many have remained behind but is of course a little bit complicated given the inability of our teams to go in the north of the Gaza Strip.”
The senior OCHA official also said that his teams have been observing the movement of 10,000 people to the south, following the calls by the Israeli forces to vacate the north, “people arrive by foot primarily thirsty, exhausted, and often with no concrete idea on where they will be staying,” he added.
De Domenico also said, “In terms of trucks coming from Egypt, yesterday we reported 76 truck of food, medicines, health supplies, bottle of water, blankets, tents and hygiene products. These bring the overall number to around I think 980, but the assistant remain far far away from what we need.”
He added, “The delivery at night and arrival of a night of trucks is also very complicated because it exposed the teams to danger and risk and we had already a couple of incidents that were very concerning.”
The humanitarian affairs official reiterated, “instead of a much needed increase of this assistance, we have been informed by the colleagues of UNWRA that due to the lack of fuel, as of tomorrow the operations of the receiving trucks will be no longer be possible.”
According to OCHA, UNWRA’s guesthouse in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip also sustained significant damage from Israeli forces neighbor strikes, “UN international staff present in Rafah left the building just 90 minutes before the strikes. We have of course, engaged with the Israeli to understand the circumstances but three different shots were hit in the house. So it seems a little bit problematic in our view,” De Domenico said.
He reiterated, “Operational condition in general is deteriorating by the hour. We have no fuel, no comms, and no guarantee of respecting UN premises or in any case notify premises, which is of course, reducing progressively our ability to operate.”
“All together the humanitarian community, we support the Secretary-General call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, which of course means that the agreement with all the parties. We requested and support the unconditional release of all hostages and the facilitation of aid delivery wherever people are in need,” the OCHA official added.
He concluded, “In particular, we call everybody to respect hospitals. IHLs (International Humanitarian Law) specifically protect hospitals and medical personnel. Hospitals must not be made places of warfare. Any military operation around or within a hospital must take steps to spare and protect the patients, medical staff and other civilians. And all feasible precautions must be taken including the effective warnings which consider the ability of patients medical staff and other civilians to evacuate safely, which is the biggest challenge that we have at the moment because we have many patients and personnel that refuse to abandon those patients that cannot move.”
