UN refugee agency concerned by ‘frightening increase’ in hepatitis cases in Gaza

By Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) on Friday expressed concern over a “frightening increase” in hepatitis A cases in the Gaza Strip.

“People in Gaza are facing yet another peril: Hepatitis A is spreading, including among children,” Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, posted on X.

He noted that since Israel began its war on Gaza, the agency has reported nearly 40,000 cases in its shelters and clinics against only 85 in the same period before the war.

“This is a frightening increase,” he warned.

Lazzarini attributed this rapid increase to the collapsed waste management system. “Piles of trash are accumulating in the scorching summer heat. Sewage discharges on the streets while people queue for hours just to go to the toilets.”

“All combined make a dangerous recipe for diseases to spread,” he added.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

Nearly 39,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 91,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Almost 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.