According to the World Health Organization, a ceasefire agreement with Hamas could increase humanitarian supplies to 600 trucks per day. This comes amid rumors that Israel’s security cabinet has approved the ceasefire agreement.
More than $10 billion is needed to rebuild Gaza’s broken healthcare system, the body added.
The hope was conveyed in a statement released on Friday by Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
“The target is to get between 500 and 600 trucks in per day over the coming weeks,” Peeperkorn said.
This would be comparable to the volume of aid entering Gaza prior to the start of the conflict on October 7, 2023, and would constitute “a huge increase” from the 40 to 50 vehicles that have been arriving in recent months.
The WHO medic called the ceasefire announcement “a sign of hope” while speaking from Jerusalem.
However, he cautioned that the persistent and acute shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies make the task enormous and intimidating.
Plans are in place for delivery to start on Sunday, he said.
“We have ordered temporary prefabricated clinics and hospitals.
“We will integrate into the existing health facilities as part of the plan to expand some needed bed capacity, address urgent health needs and health service delivery.”
Humanitarians have warned time and again that the civilian situation in Gaza has gotten out of control.
According to the authorities, since the fight started in October 2023, more than 46,000 people have died and more than 110,000 have been injured, many of them permanently.
“Disease is spreading, and the risk of famine remains high – needs that are critical to address, especially when more than 12,000 patients – a third of them children – still await evacuation for specialised care,” Peeperkorn said.
Only 29 out of 1,200 requests made between November and December 2024 were granted, representing a mere 2.4% of all requests, according to WHO.
Food, water, and medical supplies are urgently needed, but so are fuel and replacement components for hospital generators, according to the WHO and other organizations.
With just half of Gaza’s 36 facilities currently open, the country’s healthcare sector is in ruins.
Since October, 664 healthcare attacks have killed civilians and medical personnel while causing damage to critical health institutions, according to the UN health agency, which also noted that critical health infrastructure is still being attacked.
Notwithstanding the dire circumstances, WHO intends to carry out a comprehensive 60-day emergency health response plan as soon as a ceasefire is established.
This plan calls for setting up temporary medical clinics, restoring essential healthcare services, scaling up current health efforts, battling malnutrition, improving disease surveillance, and delivering medical supplies to previously inaccessible areas.
In addition to meeting the immediate health needs, there is an urgent need for broader humanitarian aid. Food, clean water, and shelter are fundamental priorities, along with other essential medicines and medical equipment that remain in desperately low supply.
For the time being, international agencies continue to work under challenging and dangerous conditions in the hopes that the ceasefire will provide a lifeline to those trapped in the besieged enclave.
The WHO estimates that more than $10 billion is needed to restore Gaza’s broken healthcare system, and significant international support will be necessary to prevent additional casualties and a total collapse of the region’s health infrastructure.