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Rabat – As Gaza grapples with the spread of famine, cholera, and other diseases, United Nations humanitarian agencies are sounding the alarm over a more physical, but equally deadly threat: unexploded bombs scattered across the region.
These explosive devices, which have been dropped by Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) but did not denote, are as part of their merciless campaign on Gaza. According to UN agencies, they pose a grave danger to Palestinian children, who face the risk of injury or death as they navigate through areas littered with these threats.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) highlights the persistent menace of these unexploded bombs, which continue to imperil displaced persons attempting to return to their homes.
“Children are particularly vulnerable,” OCHA noted, referencing a tragic incident on June 29, when a nine-year-old girl was killed and three other children were injured by bombs that detonated after the fact in southern Khan Younis.
The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) estimates that approximately 10% of munitions remain potentially inactive, implying that a significant amount of the war debris blanketing Gaza contains undetonated explosives. However, the risk of them exploding once triggered remains high.
According to the organization, the UN protection groups have been working on a number of risk assessments and deploying additional bomb disposal teams.
These initiatives also seek to educate the public on the hazards posed by these munitions, though they face significant hurdles, including funding shortfalls, bureaucratic delays, security concerns, and logistical challenges.
This warning comes as the IOF’s evacuation orders prompt Palestinians to flee eastern Khan Younis neighborhoods, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the southern Gaza city.
UNRWA has described the conditions in Gaza as “apocalyptic,” with infrastructure reduced by the IOF to rubble, a dire scarcity of supplies, and an acute shortage of drinking water. The living conditions have deteriorated to the point where basic survival is a daily struggle for residents. As of currently, the IOF have killed 37,925 amidst their merciless war on civilian populations.
