{"id":299782,"date":"2025-07-28T12:00:57","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T11:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=299782"},"modified":"2025-07-24T00:02:42","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T23:02:42","slug":"terror-and-chaos-for-gazans-now-entering-the-death-phase","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2025\/07\/terror-and-chaos-for-gazans-now-entering-the-death-phase\/","title":{"rendered":"Terror and Chaos for Gazans Now Entering the \u2018Death Phase\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-news-story-lead\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<div id=\"attachment_299783\" style=\"width: 610px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-299783\" class=\"wp-image-299783\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide-1024x464.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"272\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide-1024x464.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide-300x136.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide-768x348.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/gaza-israel-palestine-genocide.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-299783\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Families evacuate from Deir Al -Balah in the Gaza Strip &#8211; UNRWA<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><span class=\"TextRun SCXW83211856 BCX8 NormalTextRun\" lang=\"EN-GB\">21 Jul 2025 &#8211; <\/span><em><span class=\"TextRun SCXW83211856 BCX8 NormalTextRun\" lang=\"EN-GB\">After another deadly weekend in Gaza in which at least 67 Palestinians were reportedly killed seeking food, UN aid teams today described \u201cmayhem\u201d and starvation in the enclave as the Israeli military pushed into Deir Al-Balah for the first time.<\/span><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>In an alert, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.unrwa.org\/\" class=\"ext\" title=\"(opens in a new window)\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">UNRWA<\/a>, relayed desperate testimonies from its colleagues who are also struggling to survive in the war-torn enclave.<\/p>\n<div id=\"block-views-block-content-fields-block-body\" class=\"views-element-container block block-views block-views-block-content-fields-block-body\">\n<div class=\"block-content block__content\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"view view-content-fields view-id-content_fields view-display-id-block_body js-view-dom-id-b7c094c47e2788fff2aedfa0a932b5063537cbb4b8db761bffd3ae7af378d92c\">\n<div class=\"view-content\">\n<div class=\"views-row\">\n<div class=\"views-field views-field-field-news-story\">\n<div class=\"field-content\">\n<div class=\"paragraph paragraph--type--one-column-text paragraph--view-mode--default\">\n<div class=\"_none\">\n<div class=\"w-100\">\n<div class=\"layout row layout-builder__layout\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<div class=\"_none block block-layout-builder block-field-block-paragraph-one-column-text-field-text-column\">\n<div class=\"block-content block__content\">\n<div class=\"clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-text-column field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re in the death phase,\u201d one UNRWA worker said. \u201c<strong>Everything around people at the moment is death, whether it\u2019s bombs or strikes, children wasting away<\/strong> in front of their eyes from malnourishment, from dehydration, and dying.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Doctors and nurses who continue to work in the UN agency\u2019s clinics and medical centres \u201c<strong>are watching children disappear and die in front of their eyes, and there&#8217;s absolutely nothing that they can do about it,\u201d<\/strong> the worker continued.<\/p>\n<div class=\"context-un_news_large_credit type-soundcloud media media--type-soundcloud media--view-mode-un-news-large-credit\">\n<div class=\"field field--name-field-media-soundcloud field--type-string field--label-visually_hidden\">\n<div class=\"field__item\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"media:soundcloud:0dc7f9e1-c156-4cc7-b591-d495103ba861\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/2133807540&amp;visual=&amp;auto_play=false&amp;hide_related=true&amp;show_artwork=true&amp;show_playcount=false&amp;show_comments=false&amp;show_user=false&amp;show_reposts=false&amp;download=false&amp;buying=false&amp;sharing=false&amp;show_teaser=false&amp;single_active=true&amp;color=%23ff5500\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><strong>Civilians \u2018faced sniper and tank-fire\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The development comes after desperate Gazans seeking aid came under fire at the weekend <strong>\u201cfrom Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire\u201d,<\/strong> according to the UN World Food Programme (<a href=\"http:\/\/www1.wfp.org\/\" class=\"ext\" title=\"(opens in a new window)\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">WFP<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>In a detailed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wfp.org\/news\/gaza-convoy-incident-statement\" class=\"ext\" title=\"(opens in a new window)\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">statement<\/a> after the incident on Sunday 20 July, it explained that a 25-truck lorry convoy crossed the Zikim border point in northern Gaza \u201cdestined for starving communities\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after passing the final checkpoint after the Zikim crossing point, the convoy encountered large crowds of civilians waiting to access food supplies. This was when the shooting began, leaving \u201ccountless\u201d Gazans dead, WFP said, echoing reports by the health authorities.<\/p>\n<p>Condemning the incident, WFP noted that the victims \u201cwere simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2>A great tragedy<\/h2>\n<p>Speaking later on Monday in a briefing to journalists in New York, WFP\u2019s director of emergencies Ross Smith called the incident \u201cone of the greatest tragedies we&#8217;ve seen for our operations in Gaza and elsewhere while we&#8217;re trying to work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The UN agency said furthermore that the violence had happened <strong>\u201cdespite assurances from Israeli authorities that humanitarian operational conditions would improve;<\/strong> including that armed forces will not be present nor engage at any stage along humanitarian convoy routes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Without such fundamental guarantees, it will not be possible to continue providing life-saving support across the Gaza Strip, WFP said, its reaction coming a day after a reported 36 people seeking aid were reportedly killed close to a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation hub run by the Israeli and US authorities in the south of the Strip.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Deir Al-Balah evacuation shock<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>In central Gaza\u2019s Deir Al-Balah, meanwhile, 50,000 to 80,000 people have been impacted by a mass displacement order issued by the Israeli military \u2013 the first since war erupted on 7 October 2023.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe new order cuts through Deir Al-Balah all the way to the Mediterranean Sea, further splintering the Strip,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.unocha.org\/\" class=\"ext\" title=\"(opens in a new window)\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">OCHA<\/a> said. \u201cIt will limit the ability of the UN and our partners to move safely and effectively within Gaza, <strong>choking humanitarian access when it is needed most<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>UN staff remain in Deir Al-Balah across \u201cdozens of premises\u201d whose coordinates have been shared with the warring parties. \u201cThese locations \u2013 as with all civilian sites \u2013 must be protected, regardless of displacement orders,\u201d OCHA insisted, as\u00a0 Israeli tanks reportedly moved into southern and eastern areas of the city.<\/p>\n<p>According to reports, this may be where some of the remaining hostages seized in Hamas-led terror attacks on 7 October 2023 in Israel may still be held.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Gaza cut in two<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The latest evacuation order means that almost 88 per cent of Gaza is impacted by displacement orders or falls within Israeli-militarized zones. Some 2.1 million civilians who have been uprooted multiple times are now squeezed into the little remaining space, where essential services have collapsed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s nowhere for [Gazans] to escape. They are trapped,\u201d said UNRWA Senior Emergency Officer Louise Wateridge. \u201cThey cannot leave the Gaza Strip. They\u2019re trying to keep their children alive. They\u2019re trying to keep themselves alive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In comments to <em>UN News<\/em>, the veteran humanitarian explained that no food is available and only very limited water, explaining why so many desperate Gazans risk their lives to fetch aid from the few distribution centres and arrival points still operational.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChildren are malnourished, they\u2019re dehydrated, they are dying in front of their [parents\u2019] eyes,\u201d Ms. Wateridge continued. \u201cThe bombs and the strikes are continuing; there\u2019s no way to run, there\u2019s nowhere to hide. There\u2019s no way to escape there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/en\/story\/2025\/07\/1165443\" >Go to Original &#8211; news.un.org<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>21 Jul 2025 &#8211; After another deadly weekend in Gaza in which at least 67 Palestinians were reportedly killed seeking food, UN aid teams today described \u201cmayhem\u201d and starvation in the enclave as the Israeli military pushed into Deir Al-Balah for the first time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":299783,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[3287,1559,1854,101,100,1199,2242,87,865,1029,1966,1644,88,2416,771,427,2897,880,99,70,965,1025],"class_list":["post-299782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-united-nations","tag-anti-zionism","tag-collective-punishment","tag-crimes-against-humanity","tag-cultural-violence","tag-direct-violence","tag-ethnic-cleansing","tag-famine","tag-gaza","tag-genocide","tag-hamas","tag-hunger","tag-international-court-of-justice-icj","tag-israel","tag-israeli-occupation","tag-nakba","tag-palestine","tag-sociocide","tag-state-terrorism","tag-structural-violence","tag-usa","tag-war-crimes","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299782","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299782"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299782\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":299786,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299782\/revisions\/299786"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}