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The United Nations voiced deep concern Monday over a rising civilian death toll in Gaza, pointing to continued Israeli airstrikes and military operations that have repeatedly breached the territory's ceasefire agreement.
"We continue to remain very concerned about the impact on civilians because of the continued Israeli airstrikes," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters at a briefing.
Dujarric cited recent reports that a young boy was among those killed, and that a strike had damaged the Al-Aqsa Hospital compound in Deir al-Balah.
Medical sources said a 3-year-old child and a young man died over the weekend when Israeli forces shelled a group of civilians. Dujarric said civilians and civilian infrastructure "must always be protected."
Beyond the immediate violence, the UN warned that efforts to prepare for the approaching rainy season were being obstructed.
Local municipalities have mapped flood risks across hundreds of localities in Gaza, but Dujarric said "insufficient funding" and restrictions on aid volumes remained critical barriers to readiness.
He added that shortages of engine oil, heavy machinery and spare parts were hampering humanitarian efforts on the ground. Aid organizations have also been unable to set up shelters in areas less prone to flooding, he said, because much of the territory remains inaccessible.
A US-backed ceasefire agreement took effect in the Gaza Strip last October, aiming to halt more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hamas.
Since then, repeated Israeli violations of the truce have killed at least 1,318 Palestinians across the enclave and injured more than 4,300 others, according to figures cited by the UN. Hundreds of additional bodies have been recovered from beneath the rubble of destroyed buildings.
More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel's military campaign in Gaza began in October 2023, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
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