Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has renewed calls for an urgent and durable ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip.

“I have just returned from my second visit to the Gaza Strip since the war began. I bear witness to the unspeakable suffering of people”, said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.

“Since my first visit two weeks ago, the humanitarian situation has already become far worse. Displacement continues.  UNRWA now hosts more than 1 million people in its schools and premises across the Gaza Strip”, said Lazzarini.

“As we all anticipate the beginning of the much-awaited pause, I reiterate my call for a long-standing humanitarian ceasefire”, he added. “People are exhausted and are losing hope in humanity. They need respite; They deserve to sleep without being anxious about whether they will make it through the night. This is the bare minimum anyone should be able to have.” 

Lazzarini said the pause is also an opportunity to reach people in need including in the north and to start repairing civilian infrastructure.

The UN official stressed UNRWA commitment to continue bringing assistance to people in need, saying the Agency is ready to receive more than 150 trucks of aid per day without interruption.

“It is time to scrap the bureaucratic hurdles and limits imposed on the humanitarian community so that we expand and speed up the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian assistance to more than 2 million people”, concluded Lazzarini.