600,000 Internally Displaced People in Gaza Seeking Shelter in 150 UNRWA Facilities

Members of the United Nations and the Red Crescent prepare aid for distribution to the Palestinians at the UNRWA facility in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip (AP)
Members of the United Nations and the Red Crescent prepare aid for distribution to the Palestinians at the UNRWA facility in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip (AP)
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600,000 Internally Displaced People in Gaza Seeking Shelter in 150 UNRWA Facilities

Members of the United Nations and the Red Crescent prepare aid for distribution to the Palestinians at the UNRWA facility in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip (AP)
Members of the United Nations and the Red Crescent prepare aid for distribution to the Palestinians at the UNRWA facility in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip (AP)

Nearly 600,000 internally displaced people are sheltering in 150 facilities of the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) in Gaza.

Also, at least 40 UNRWA installations have been impacted, the UN agency added in a post on Wednesday on the social media platform X.

"Our shelters are four times over their capacities - many people are sleeping in the streets as current facilities are overwhelmed," the agency added.

Since Oct.7, more than 100 Palestinians have been killed in West Bank clashes with the Israeli military, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

Israel's military intensified its bombing of southern Gaza overnight after one of the deadliest days for Palestinians since the conflict began as world leaders called for a halt to fighting to allow aid into the besieged enclave.

The United States and Russia are leading international calls for a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas to allow aid into Gaza where Palestinians are living in harrowing conditions.

A total of 704 Palestinians, including 305 children, were killed on Tuesday, the health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said, a toll the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said was the highest reported in a single day since the conflict began nearly three weeks ago.



Israeli Settlers Briefly Crossed into Lebanon, the Military Says

UN "blue line" notifications are pictured near the Lebanese-Israeli border as seen from the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila, Lebanon October 14, 2022. (Reuters)
UN "blue line" notifications are pictured near the Lebanese-Israeli border as seen from the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila, Lebanon October 14, 2022. (Reuters)
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Israeli Settlers Briefly Crossed into Lebanon, the Military Says

UN "blue line" notifications are pictured near the Lebanese-Israeli border as seen from the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila, Lebanon October 14, 2022. (Reuters)
UN "blue line" notifications are pictured near the Lebanese-Israeli border as seen from the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila, Lebanon October 14, 2022. (Reuters)

A group of Israeli settlers have briefly crossed the border into Lebanon before they were removed by troops, the military acknowledged Wednesday.

The civilians who crossed the border came from the Uri Tzafon movement, a group calling for Israeli settlement of southern Lebanon. Photos posted by the group online Saturday showed a small group of activists holding signs and erecting tents inside Lebanon while Israeli soldiers were present.

After first denying the reports to Israeli media, the military said Wednesday that civilians had crossed the border “by a few meters” and were removed by troops.

The military called the border breach a “serious incident” and said it was investigating.

“Any attempt to approach or cross the border into Lebanese territory without coordination poses a life-threatening risk and interferes with the IDF’s ability to operate in the area and carry out its mission,” the military said, using the acronym for the Israel Defense Forces.

The settler group Uri Tzafon, which means “Awaken the North” in Hebrew, crossed the border in the area of the Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras. In the past, the movement has said the area is home to an old Hebrew settlement.

Groups of settler activists also have breached the Gaza border more than once since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, at one point erecting small wooden tents before they were evacuated by troops. Daniela Weiss, the leader of the movement to resettle Gaza, claims she has entered Gaza twice since the start of the war.

Israel’s settler movement has been emboldened by its current government -- the furthest-right in Israeli history -- and is now seeking to expand to parts of southern Lebanon and the north of the Gaza.