Since October 7 and the escalation of violence between Israel and Hamas, at least 23,357 Palestinians were killed and about 59,410 reportedly injured in Gaza by continuous bombing by Israeli forces. This devastating toll comes after a massive attack launched by Hamas on October 7, killing 1,200 Israelis and taking hostage 240 Israelis and foreign nationals.
HI with displaced people
HI emergency activities remain concentrated in emergency shelters for displaced persons. With the efforts of our 100 staff and volunteers, we have been able to reach 110 shelters that have been set up in Gaza and assess the humanitarian needs of 7,660 displaced people.
Distribution in case of crisis
So far, HI has distributed almost all of its three stocks of assistive devices and items for emergency situation in southern Gaza: We have distributed 1,092 assistive devices, including wheelchairs, crutches, etc., for people who are wounded or with disabilities. Additionally, we provided 466 wound dressings to families to help them to treat light injuries that do not require a doctor.
We also distributed 137 kitchen sets, 88 dignity kits, 1,369 diapers, and 84 baby blankets to displaced families who have evacuated their houses, some multiple times, without their personal belongings, and now remain in shelters. We were able to organize the same distribution in the West Bank, where we provided 500 dignity care and hygiene kits to displaced families from Gaza.
With our partners, overall, we were able to distribute humanitarian aid to up to 3,289 people.
Recreational activities, risk education and rehabilitation sessions
We have conducted 74 recreational activities in shelters for up to 30,877 people, the vast majority being children. These activities, consisting of games, songs, drawing etc., are important to alleviate children's anxiety and provide them a moment of normality.
More than 12,600 children and adults participated in our risk education and preparedness for conflict sessions. 900 leaflets were distributed, and an SMS was sent to 500,000 people just a few days after the beginning of the violence reminding the best practice to protect oneself in context of armed conflict. These sessions are crucial as they provide information about the dangers caused by the presence of explosive remnants following a bombing campaign and instruct the public on how to protect themselves. They also offer tips on the best ways to protect oneself during an attack.
HI team and volunteers in Gaza have also provided 3,967 rehabilitation sessions, including 2,195 wound dressing and nursing sessions, 1,242 physiotherapy sessions, and 530 occupational therapy sessions.
A long-term response
We are exploring the possibilities to scale up our response in Gaza. We are organizing a large shipment of humanitarian supplies to Gaza in the coming days. We are considering working in host communities and houses, supporting emergency rehabilitation care in hospitals or using mobile teams for rehabilitation and psychosocial support to cover more locations…
We will also gradually expand the number of our teams. 100 people from HI and partners are already working for our activities in Gaza. We know that even if violence ends today, our response to the crisis in Gaza will be on the long run.
HI in Palestine
HI launched its first project in Palestine in 1996. For the last 27 years, our teams have been responding to the needs of the Palestinian community – both in West Bank and Gaza – across several sectors. HI Palestine is running projects in Disaster Preparedness and Risk Reduction, Physical and Functional Rehabilitation, Economic Inclusion and Economic Recovery, and Inclusive Education.
