{"id":194173,"date":"2016-10-02T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T16:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?p=194173"},"modified":"2019-07-17T16:59:54","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T20:59:54","slug":"auto-insert-194173","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/auto-insert-194173\/","title":{"rendered":"Gaza Situation Report (Issue No. 163) – Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA"},"content":{"rendered":"
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GAZA SITUATION REPORT 163<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u00a002 October\u00a0\u00a02016<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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20-27 September 2016 | Issue 163<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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My aunt had also studied at the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Gaza Training Centre, and she advised me to apply; here I have the opportunity to learn and study, and I have found like-minded friends. I became more hopeful for my future.\u201d Mohmmed Al Shaer, 18, student in Computer Technology at the GTC. Read more\u00a0<\/span>here<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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HIGHLIGHTS<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Chair of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Advisory Commission (AdCom) and Head of the Department of Humanitarian Aid at the Swiss Development and Cooperation Agency (SDC), Mr. Manuel Bessler, visited Gaza on 25 September, accompanied by a delegation of SDC representatives. The goal of the visit was to get a firsthand impression on the situation in Gaza and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s programmes and humanitarian response. The delegation visited refugee families, engaged with Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA school parliament representatives and front line staff, and received briefings on various Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA programmes, with a focus on protection and including refugee communications. The AdCom is made up of 27 Members and three Observers. It is currently being chaired by Switzerland. It meets twice a year, usually in May\/June and November, to advise and assist the Commissioner-General in carrying out the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA mandate. Mr. Manuel Bessler, the head of the AdCom, will also visit all other Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA fields in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Under the theme \u201cart, not trade\u201d Palestine refugee and photographer Ezz Al Sa\u2019anun organized a mobile photo exhibition inside a bus that moves to different refugee camps across Gaza. The aim of the exhibition is to bring arts to vulnerable persons who usually do not go or have access to art shows. So far, the show has travelled to Jabalia and Beach camps as well as in Gaza city. It will move to several other camps and remote areas in Gaza in the coming weeks. At the end of the exhibition the photographer plans to distribute his photos to camp refugee children. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA believes that Palestine refugees are best positioned to describe their experiences, and often pictures are worth a thousand words. For this reason, each year, the <\/span>EU-Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Photo Competition<\/u><\/a>\u00a0offers Palestine refugees aged 16-29 an opportunity to capture their hopes and dreams in photos and share them with the rest of the world. The theme for the 2016 competition is \u201c<\/span>Breaking Stereotypes\u201d<\/u><\/a>\u00a0and Palestine refugees who meet the age criteria can submit their photos to Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA (through the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA website) until 24 October.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Relief and Social Services Programme (RSSP) aims to empower Palestine refugees, focusing on the most vulnerable groups, by meeting their social and economic needs through community social interventions. RSSP activities range from the distribution of food baskets, to the regular assessment of refugees\u2019 poverty status through social workers to define their eligibility for services, or a variety of skills trainings and capacity building mainly for women, children and youth through its Women Programme Centres (WPCs), located in all five areas of Gaza. In the month of August, RSSP social workers visited over 9,750 families across Gaza to assess their poverty status. Further, the disability programme provided 84 refugees with assistive devices through coordination with Community-Based Rehabilitation Centres, and RSSP\u2019s social intervention division \u2013 responsible for the domestic, educational, economic, medical, and psycho-social or shelter needs of the most vulnerable refugees \u2013 detected 46 new intervention cases and referred an additional 110 cases inside and outside of Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRW to provide assistance. In cooperation with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, RSSP, through its WPCs, offered training courses in leadership for women under the theme \u201clet us change\u201d. RSSP also assists other vulnerable groups such as elderly persons, children who have lost one or both parents and visually impaired children studying at the Agency\u2019s Rehabilitation Centre for the Visually Impaired (RCVI) in Gaza city.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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On 27 September, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA organized an introductory visit to Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s work in Gaza for the Agency for International Cooperation and Development of the local government of Extremadura in Spain (AEXCID). The delegation visited the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Rehabilitation Centre for Visually Impaired in Gaza city, where Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA currently provides education to 128 children with severe visual impairments. The delegation also met with representatives from the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Health Programme and visited the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Rimal Health Centre in Gaza where they talked to patients as well as Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA health personnel; they also discussed the overall humanitarian situation in Gaza and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s strategic response with the Director of Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Operations, Mr. Bo Schack.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Throughout history, colonization and occupations have always had economic dimensions, states a new <\/span>report<\/u><\/a>\u00a0by the <\/span>Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Conference on Trade and Development<\/u><\/a>, analyzing the economic costs of the Israeli occupation for the Palestinian people. This is also the case in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), where almost 50 years of occupation impose heavy economic costs on the Palestinian people and their economy. The report describes how the Palestinian economy transformed from a thriving economy of a lower-middle income country to a deformed economic structure on the verge of economic and humanitarian collapse, as the Palestinian people are denied access to their own land, water and natural resources, while their property and assets are being confiscated or destroyed. The report also includes some perspectives on the economics of military occupations which throughout history consistently had economic objectives, typically involving the exploitation and the impoverishment of the occupied. The report describes the relationship between the Israeli economy and that of the oPt as one of two dissimilar and unequal economies, whereby the large, dominant economy practices policies that keep the small economy weak and dependent. As examples for the situation in the oPT, the report mentions policies and factors such as: tight restrictions on the movement of people and goods, the systematic erosion and destruction of the productive base, loss of land, water and other natural resources, the fragmentation of the domestic market and separation from neighbouring and international markets, a tight blockade on Gaza since 2007, the expansion of Israeli settlements, the construction of the separation barrier and the establishment of the closure policy in the West Bank and the isolation of East Jerusalem from the rest of the oPt. The report will be presented to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ General Assembly in November 2016. It can be read <\/span>here.<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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As follow up to the <\/span>Ad-hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC)<\/u><\/a>\u00a0meeting for development assistance to the Palestinian people that took place this month in New York, the AHLC chair – Norway – published <\/span>a summary of the discussions<\/u><\/a>. The summary includes 14 action points relating to fiscal sustainability, economic development and Gaza reconstruction and recovery. Regarding the latter, the AHLC called for: accelerated reconstruction particularly with respect to infrastructure, energy, water and housing, urging donors to disburse the funds pledged at the Cairo Conference in 2014; increased transmission of construction material into Gaza through the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism; expressing concern about the potential diversion of construction material entering Gaza, and calling on Israel to publish clear official guidelines and procedures for the import of dual use materials, in order to ensure consistent, predictable access to importing these materials in a transparent way.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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THE Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA SHELTER UPDATE<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A shelter update will be provided in the next Gaza situation report.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u2022\u00a0\u00a0During the reporting week, Israeli forces fired towards Palestinian areas along the perimeter fence and towards Palestinian boats on a daily basis. On one occasion they injured one fisherman. One shell was fired from the Egyptian side and landed adjacent to a Hamas National Security site in southern Gaza, injuring one Hamas National Security member. In another incident Egyptian patrol boats opened fire towards Palestinian boats. No injuries were reported. The Israeli Air Force shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle belonging to Hamas over the coastline in the Gaza Strip; Israeli forces said it had penetrated Israeli area.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Civilians, mostly youth, continued to protest near the perimeter fence expressing their eagerness to defend Al Aqsa Mosque and in solidarity with Palestinians in the West Bank. When some of them approached the perimeter fence and threw stones towards Israeli observation posts, Israeli forces responded with gun fire and tear gas. Three persons were injured; two of them are in a serious condition.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Also other regular protests took place during the reporting week, mostly in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Three Israeli bulldozers and two tanks entered approximately 70 metres into Gaza to conduct a clearing and excavation operation. They withdrew on the same day. Militants fired one test rocket towards the sea. No injuries were reported.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Various fire outbreaks were reported due to electricity malfunction or generator explosions, including inside a government school bus, a Community College, a non-residential building which sustained damage, and a restaurant. While no injuries were reported in these incidents, a 27-year old and a 25-year old woman died due to electricity malfunction in their houses in two separate incidents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In addition, one child died and two persons were injured when a roof made of asbestos of a residential house collapsed; in another incident, a sewage well still under construction collapsed and one worker died and one was injured. Further, two family disputes were reported; in one four injuries were caused due to firearms and in the other dispute homemade bombs and firearms led to four injuries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA RESPONSE<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA TRAINING CENTRES: EDUCATION AND OPPORTÄ¢¹½ÊÓƵITIES FOR YOUTH<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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19-year-old Heba Abu Gedian (right) is studying with her friend in the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA
\nGaza Training Centre in Gaza city. \u00a9 2016 Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Photo by Tamer Hamam<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Unemployment in Gaza reached extremely high levels as a direct result of recurrent conflict and the successive layers of restrictions on movement of goods and people due to the blockade, now in its tenth year. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, youth unemployment in Gaza stood at over 61 per cent in the second quarter of 2016, and at over 41 per cent overall.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Due to these high rates, entire generations in Gaza are growing up with frustration and a sense of hopelessness at the lack of opportunities to apply their capabilities and high motivation. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA tries to provide opportunities for employment and income through various interventions, such as the Job Creation Programme, construction activities, and skills-based training through its Vocational Training Centres in Gaza city and Khan Younis, southern Gaza.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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19-year old Heba Abu Gedia is in her first year of studying to be an executive secretary through the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Gaza Training Centre (GTC) in Gaza city; she lives with her 12-member family in Jabalia camp, located slightly north of the city. Like many refugee families in Gaza, the family lives in severe poverty, and while her sister studies at university, her parents did not have the means to allow Heba to commence her studies as well, due to the high study fees.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIf I had not gotten the opportunity to enroll in the GTC, I would now sit at home, doing nothing with my life. But because of the GTC, I can learn something, develop my skills, and when I graduate I can apply for jobs, hopefully earn an income and improve my life,\u201d Heba explained.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA GTC was established in 1953 with a view to provide youth refugees with skills-based training and assist them in finding meaningful employment opportunities, increase their chances in the local job market and help develop the local economy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cI know the feeling of not being able to commence or complete your studies due to lack of financial resources; I had the same experience when I was young, and the same as Heba, the GTC gave me an opportunity to learn and study, and now I am a senior technical instructor at the very same GTC in the department of commerce,\u201d commented Wajdi Abu Muhisin, Heba\u2019s teacher, with pride.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Other technical and trade courses at the two Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Training Centres, include civil engineering, telecommunications, physiotherapy, carpentry, auto mechanic or masonry. Currently the Agency provides training opportunities for a total of 3,083 youth in both centres. To date, more than 21,000 students have completed the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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FÄ¢¹½ÊÓƵDING NEEDS<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA is confronted with an increased demand for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine refugees, the extent of their vulnerability and their deepening poverty. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions and financial support has been outpaced by the growth in needs. As a result, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Programme Budget, which supports the delivery of core essential services, operates with a large shortfall, projected for 2016 to stand at US$ 74 million. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA encourages all Member States to work collectively to exert all possible efforts to fully fund the Agency\u2019s Programme Budget. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA emergency programmes and key projects, also operating with large shortfalls, are funded through separate funding portals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Following the 2014 conflict, US$ 257 million has been pledged in support of Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s emergency shelter programme, for which an estimated US$ 720 million is required. This leaves a current shortfall of US$ 463 million. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA urgently appeals to donors to generously contribute to its emergency shelter programme to provide displaced Palestine refugees in Gaza with rental subsidies or cash assistance to undertake repair works and reconstruction of their damaged homes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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As presented in Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA\u2019s occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) Emergency Appeal for 2016, the Agency is seeking US$ 403 million to meet the minimum humanitarian needs of Palestine refugees in the oPt. The Agency requires US$ 355.95 million for programme interventions in Gaza, including US$ 109.7 million for emergency food assistance, US$ 142.3 million for emergency shelter assistance, US$ 60.4 million for emergency cash-for-work assistance, US$ 4.4 million for emergency health\/mobile health clinics and US$ 3.1 for education in emergencies. More information can be found <\/span>here<\/u>.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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CROSSINGS<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Longstanding restrictions on the movement of people and goods to and from Gaza have undermined the living conditions of 1.8 million Palestinians in Gaza. <\/span>Israel prevents all access to and from the Gaza Strip by sea and air<\/u><\/a>. <\/span>Movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza<\/u><\/a>\u00a0is restricted to three crossings: Rafah crossing, Erez crossing and Kerem Shalom crossing. Rafah crossing is controlled by the Egyptian authorities and technically allows for the movement of a number of authorized travelers, Palestinian medical and humanitarian cases only. Erez crossing is controlled by Israeli authorities and technically allows for the movement of aid workers and limited numbers of authorized travelers, including Palestinian medical and humanitarian cases. Kerem Shalom crossing, also controlled by Israeli authorities, technically allows for the movement of authorized goods only.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u2022\u00a0\u00a0Rafah crossing was open from 21 to 23 September for pilgrims. It was closed on all other days.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u2022\u00a0\u00a0Erez crossing is usually open six days a week. This week it was open for National ID holders (humanitarian cases, medical cases, merchants and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ staff) and international staff from 20 to 22 and from 25 to 27 September. On 23 September it was open for pedestrians only. It was closed on 24 September.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u2022\u00a0\u00a0Kerem Shalom crossing is the only official crossing open for the transfer of goods into and out of the Strip and is usually open five days a week. It was open from 20 to 22 and 25 to 27 September. It was closed on 23 and 24 September.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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http:\/\/www.unrwa.org\/newsroom\/emergency-reports\/gaza-situation-report-163<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

GAZA SITUATION REPORT 163 \u00a002 October\u00a0\u00a02016 20-27 September 2016 | Issue 163   My aunt had also studied at the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵRWA Gaza Training Centre, and she advised me to apply; here I have the opportunity to learn and study, and I have found like-minded friends. I became more hopeful for my future.\u201d Mohmmed Al Shaer, […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":193,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"country":[],"document-category":[2929,2949],"document-source":[1817],"committee-meeting":[],"document-subject":[2517,2005,5200,1745,2729],"entity":[5343,1729],"document-language":[6542],"class_list":["post-194173","document","type-document","status-publish","hentry","document-category-situation-report","document-category-update","document-source-united-nations-relief-and-works-agency-for-palestine-refugees-in-the-near-east-unrwa","document-subject-access-and-movement","document-subject-gaza-strip","document-subject-humanitarian-relief","document-subject-refugees-and-displaced-persons","document-subject-shelter","entity-palestine-plo-palestinian-authority","entity-united-nations-system","document-language-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/194173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/document"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/193"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document\/194173\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"document-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-category?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"document-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-source?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"committee-meeting","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/committee-meeting?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"document-subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-subject?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"entity","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/entity?post=194173"},{"taxonomy":"document-language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/document-language?post=194173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}