Israeli airstrikes displace over 260,000 Palestinians in Gaza: UN

By Mahmoud Barakat

ANKARA (AA) - Israeli airstrikes have displaced more than 260,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the UN humanitarian office said.

“Over 263,934 people in Gaza are believed to have fled their homes,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in an update on Tuesday.

Fears are mounting that the number of displaced Palestinians in Gaza will increase amid continuing Israeli attacks and Hamas rocket fire.

The situation escalated in the Gaza Strip following an attack by Palestinian group Hamas on Israeli towns near the seaside territory. Israel retaliated with massive airstrikes in Gaza and placed the enclave under total blockade.

Some 2,100 people were killed in the violence, including at least 900 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis.

Israel has also cut water and electricity supply to Gaza, inevitably worsening the already dire humanitarian situation.

Home to nearly 2.2 million people, the Gaza Strip has already been reeling under a crippling Israeli siege since 2007.

Meanwhile, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said late Tuesday that more than 175,000 people in Gaza have taken refuge in 88 of its schools.

The UN agency said: “88 of our schools in the Gaza Strip have turned into shelters for more than 175,000 people.”

The agency said that the numbers are increasing due to the continued Israeli airstrikes.