Occupied Palestinian Territories - Humanitarian Update, August 2010

Summary of monthly Humanitarian Monitor report produced by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

AUGUST OVERVIEW

In many crisis areas around the world, humanitarian agencies are facing ever greater restrictions on humanitarian access and increasingly serious challenges to their operations. Some of August's developments highlighted the fact that the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) fits, to a large extent, within this global trend.

While the easing of the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip since 20 June has resulted in some economic reactivation of the private sector, the ability of humanitarian agencies to address the enormous needs of the population in the area of housing and services remains severely constrained due to the ongoing restrictions on the import of construction materials. UNRWA, for example, is still waiting approval by the Israeli authorities for the entry of materials for the 11 UN projects (schools and clinics) approved in principle in July; these projects constitute less than 1.5 percent of the value of the proposed work programme of the UN in Gaza. Additionally, current monitoring procedures required by the Israeli authorities for the entry of each individual truckload, make largescale implementation of projects unsustainable.

Effective delivery of aid in the Gaza Strip is also hampered by access restrictions to areas along the perimeter fence around Gaza. A report released this month by OCHA and WFP indicates that since late 2008, the Israeli military has totally or partially prevented access to areas up to 1,500 meters from the fence, with devastating consequences on the livelihoods of the population and its physical security; in August five civilians working in these areas were shot and injured by the Israeli military. According to the report, these restrictions have impeded the conduct of need assessments, the delivery of aid packages and the monitoring and evaluation of programs by humanitarian staff.

In Area C of the West Bank, during the first two weeks of the month, the Israeli authorities demolished 48 Palestinian structures that lacked building permits, displacing or otherwise affecting over 210 people. In one of the demolitions in the Bedouin community of Al Farisiya in the Jordan Valley, 20 tents and most food parcels distributed in July by humanitarian agencies to previously displaced families, were either destroyed or damaged. With the beginning of the month of Ramadan (11 August- 9 September), the Israeli authorities announced a one-month lull in demolitions.

Also on the occasion of Ramadan, the Israeli authorities implemented a number of 'movement easings' throughout the West Bank, which included the extension of the operational hours at some checkpoints and the opening of three internal routes for Palestinian movement. Yet, access of Palestinians to areas behind the Barrier, including East Jerusalem, to the Jordan Valley, and within the Israeli-controlled area of Hebron City (H2) has remained very restricted. Moreover, the expected transferring of responsibility over the checkpoints around East Jerusalem to the Israeli Crossing Points Administration (CPA) is of continuous concern due to the severe procedures implemented by this body at other checkpoints (including into Gaza). As a result, such a transfer may severely undermine the capacity of humanitarian agencies to continue operating in and from East Jerusalem.

On the eve of a new school year, the needs of children attending 26 Area C schools affected by unsafe or unhygienic facilities, threat of demolition, settler violence and/or access restrictions, have remained unmet. The Humanitarian Country Team is still waiting an official response by the Israeli authorities to an emergency plan targeting these schools, submitted in January 2010.

Civilians in the oPt continue to be affected also by indiscriminate violence. In one of the gravest incidents this month, the armed wing of the Hamas movement shot and killed four Israeli settlers who were travelling on a West Bank road. This incident triggered a wave of arrests by PA security forces as well as access restrictions by Israeli forces (to be covered in the September issue). Also in the West Bank, OCHA recorded a total of 21 incidents perpetrated by Israeli settlers, which resulted in Palestinian injuries or damage to Palestinian property. In one of the latter, Israeli settlers set fire to some 3,000 dunums of cultivated land, thus undermining the livelihoods of some 100 Palestinian families from the Beit Furik village (Nablus). The frequency of this type of settler attacks is on the rise since the beginning of the year. In the Gaza Strip, in addition to shooting incidents along the perimeter fence, civilian lives are threatened by frequent incidents of internal violence, including explosions in residential areas, family feuds and reckless use of weapons; a total of six people were killed in these types of incidents during August and another 91 were injured, more than any other month in 2010.

ISSUES IN FOCUS

The impact of displacement on access to education
With a new academic year due to begin in public schools on September 15th, displaced families will face significant challenges in preparing their children for school and many are at risk of disruption to their schooling. More children are beginning the new school year faced with the threat of having their homes demolished as the Israeli authorities have signaled that demolitions will continue in the period following the month of Ramadan. Displacement has been found to result in significant disruption to education services with negative repercussions on both access to education and the quality of learning environments. For example, Save the Children UK's research on forced displacement in the OPT indicated that 20 percent of displaced families reported that the availability of education services was worse following displacement. Further research by Save the Children showed that economic hardships resulting from displacement also increased pressures on families to take their children out of school. A recent UNESCO-commissioned survey conducted in Gaza showed that students who had been displaced, including those who had been forced to move to another school as a result, had greater difficulties learning and performing in school and strained relationships with their teachers.

Access to education for many children living in Area C is also undermined by other factors. Twenty-six (26) schools have been assessed by humanitarian organizations as in need of a swift humanitarian response5. Concerns include unsafe or unhygienic facilities, schools facing the threat of demolition, attacks on students, and restrictions on access to and from school. An emergency response plan submitted by the Humanitarian Country Team to the ICA in January 2010 to address the situation affecting these schools is yet to be answered.

Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

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