Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
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October 16, 2025 Humanitarian aid
UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher headed to Rafah after his visit to Cairo. He noted the importance of this route for delivering aid to the Gaza Strip.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which Fletcher leads, reports that supplies from Egypt are still arriving via a bypass route and are being inspected on the Israeli side of the Kerem Shalom crossing. Opening the Rafah crossing will ensure more timely delivery of aid. Fletcher emphasized the need to open all crossings to expand humanitarian operations.
Speaking to reporters in Cairo yesterday, he stressed that humanitarian organizations had been preparing for this moment and now need full access to deliver the necessary volumes of aid.
The humanitarian community will not be able to provide assistance on the scale required without cooperation with international NGOs, the UN also stated.
"The Israeli authorities are currently denying visas to a number of international NGOs and preventing many of them from sending supplies to the Gaza Strip. At the same time, humanitarian organizations in the Gaza Strip continue to make the most of the opportunities afforded them by the ceasefire," UN Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said at a press briefing in New York.
On Tuesday alone, UN partners distributed nearly 960,000 meals through 175 canteens, and UN-supported bakeries produced over 200,000 kilograms of bread. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) provided families in Gaza with over a million diapers. And three World Health Organization (WHO) trucks delivered medical supplies, including surgical ones, from their warehouse in Deir el-Balah to Gaza City.
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WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that these will be donated to Al-Shifa Hospital and used to treat 10,000 people. WHO also deployed an international emergency medical team to strengthen orthopedic surgery and trauma care in Gaza. WHO teams have opened two new operating rooms in Gaza and plan to add an additional 120 beds to Al-Shifa Hospital.
OCHA reports that teams from various UN agencies have completed clearing the main roads leading to the Erez and Zikim crossings in the north of the Strip.
"Today our teams are checking the Salah ad-Din road, which has not been used for several months," Dujarric said.
The UN also continues to deliver supplies, including flour, food parcels and personal hygiene items, to the Kisufim and Kerem Shalom crossings.
Staff from several UN agencies visited the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City, which was severely damaged by the recent military operation. Residents are attempting to return to their homes and clearing debris.
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