UPDATE - Supply cuts by Israel can leave Gaza without power, drinking water, warns UN

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT FROM WHO, ADDS DETAILS, CHANGES SPOT

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – Supply cuts by Israel can leave the Gaza power plant without fuel within days and can cause a severe shortage of drinking water for 610,000 people, the UN humanitarian agency warned on Tuesday.

"Israeli authorities have ceased supplying electricity to the Gaza Strip, reducing the hours of electricity to 3-4 hours per day. The Gaza Power Plant is currently the only source of power and could run out of fuel within days," Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told a UN press briefing in Geneva.

Regarding the cut of water supply, Laerke said: "This decision affects over 610,000 people in Gaza and will result in a severe shortage of drinking water."

UNICEF spokesman James Elder also voiced concern about the supply cut decision by Israel.

"UNICEF is alarmed by suspension of water and food supplies to Gaza," Elder said, reminding parties of their obligations under international laws.

- WHO calls for humanitarian corridor

The World Health Organization (WHO), during the same briefing, called for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor into Gaza to provide necessary health services.

"WHO is calling for an end to the violence. Health facilities, patients, health workers and civilians in general have to be protected and safeguarded," WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said. "A humanitarian corridor is needed to reach people with critical medical supplies."

Jasarevic added that 13 attacks on the health sector have been confirmed in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the current escalation.

He also said that the WHO is reprograming $1 million to procure more urgently-needed medical supplies from the local market to fill gaps in need.

On Monday, the UN Human Rights Council observed a moment of silence for the loss of innocent lives in the occupied Palestinian territory and elsewhere.

The moment of silence was observed by all the countries in the room after the speech of Pakistan's deputy permanent representative to the UN in Geneva.

"We request observing one-minute silence for the loss of innocent lives, including women, children and the elderly. It is also an occasion to remember victims of decades of foreign occupation in the occupied Palestinian territory. I request you all to stand for one minute to honor those victims," Zaman Mehdi said at the end of his speech.

The Palestinian Hamas group launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel early Saturday, firing a barrage of rockets and infiltrating Israel by land, air, and sea. It said the surprise attack was in response to the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and increased settler violence against Palestinians.

In retaliation, the Israeli military launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The number of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in Gaza has risen to 704, including 143 children and 105 women, the Gaza-based Health Ministry said early Tuesday. It said the number of wounded has risen to around 4,000.

At least 900 Israelis have been killed and over 2,600 others wounded in the fighting, according to the Israeli Health Ministry.