The battered city has “nothing necessary to sustain life” as the Israeli army’s incessant bombardment continues.
The town of Beit Lahiya has been declared a disaster zone as the Israeli army hits northern Gaza with airstrikes.
The municipality made the statement on Wednesday after a nighttime attack that reportedly killed eight people. The strikes continued the Israeli offensive that has killed around 350 people in the northern enclave over the past seven days, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
“We declare that the city is a disaster zone due to the Israeli war of extermination and siege, and that it has no food, no water, no hospitals, no doctors, no services, no communications,” he said. declared the municipality of Beit Lahiya in a press release.
Authorities demanded the opening of safe corridors to transport medical supplies, food, fuel and civil protection equipment to northern Gaza.
The area has been subject to incessant attacks since Israel launched military operations centered in and around the Jabaliya refugee camp in early October.
A population on its knees
The operation exacerbated an already serious humanitarian crisis in the region.
Thousands of displaced people are seeking refuge amid a lack of food, water and other essential resources. Medical care is also almost absent since health establishments are no longer operational.
A spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent in Gaza described the situation as “catastrophic”. Oxfam said it was unable to reach populations in the northern enclave and accused the army of using starvation as a weapon.
“This is why the Beit Lahiya municipality declared that the northern part of the strip is a disaster zone, meaning there is nothing to sustain life there,” Tel Aviv Tribune’s Hani Mahmoud reported from Deir el-Balah to Gaza.
Sam Rose, senior deputy director in Gaza for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, described conditions in northern Gaza as “absolutely desperate.”
“It’s horrible, incident after incident, inflicted on a population on its knees,” he said.
“Incidents causing numerous casualties”
The siege in northern Gaza has so far killed around 800 people, Gaza’s health ministry said.
One of the most devastating attacks occurred on Monday night, when at least 93 people were killed in Beit Lahiya as a strike leveled a residential building. Widespread international condemnation followed.
Tor Wennesland, the U.N. envoy for the Middle East peace process, called it “yet another in a recent series of deadly mass casualty incidents… that raise serious concerns about violations of international law humanitarian”.
The official demanded that “this endless spiral of death and destruction must end immediately.”
The United States called the attack “horrific,” even as Washington continues to provide billions of dollars in military aid to Israel.
The Israeli military said it was investigating, but had no comment on Tuesday’s nighttime attack.
OCHA said at least 347 people were killed in “mass casualty incidents” in Gaza between October 24 and 29, with many more missing, believed to be trapped under rubble.
