Hamas' attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip on Saturday are having far-reaching repercussions in the Palestinian enclave. More than 260,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). "More than 263,934 people in Gaza are believed to have fled their homes," OCHA said, adding that it expected the number to "continue to rise." The organization notes that around 3,000 people have been displaced, "due to previous escalations," before Saturday.
Gaza has been placed under siege by Israel and is being pounded by air raids. "No electricity, no water, no gas," Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Monday. The United Nations (UN) on Tuesday denounced the siege. "The imposition of sieges that endanger the lives of civilians by depriving them of life-saving goods is prohibited under international humanitarian law," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
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The Hamas attack was condemned by many Western countries. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, while acknowledging Israel's "legitimate security concerns," said he was "deeply shocked" by the Israeli authorities' announcement of a "complete siege" of the Gaza Strip.
Since Saturday's offensive in Israel by Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, the war has killed more than 3,000 civilians, Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters. In response, the Israeli army launched Operation Iron Swords, carrying out airstrikes and destroying buildings purporting to be Hamas "command centers" in Gaza.
At least 1,000 homes destroyed and 560 heavily damaged
The death toll from the attacks in Israel has risen to "more than 1,000," the Israeli military said late Tuesday. In Gaza, officials said 900 people had been killed since the airstrikes began. The shelling destroyed more than 1,000 homes and 560 others, heavily damaged, were rendered uninhabitable, according to OCHA, citing Palestinian authorities.
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Nearly 175,500 displaced people have found refuge in 88 schools run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), the organization added. More than 14,500 others have joined 12 public schools, while OCHA estimates that nearly 74,000 people have taken refuge with relatives or neighbours, or in other places such as churches.
The number of displaced people inside the Gaza Strip "represents the highest number of displaced people since the 50-day escalation during hostilities in 2014," the UN added. "Providing for basic needs is becoming more and more complicated" for non-displaced people.