Israel is worsening already catastrophic conditions in Gaza and continuing to violate the truce agreement, with at least 2,500 homes destroyed since the deal was reached in October, The New Arab's Arabic-language sister publication Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported on Monday.
According to the Palestinian Initiative Movement, Israel's demolition campaign is designed to "deepen the humanitarian catastrophe and impose forced displacement and collective punishment on the people of Gaza".
Gaza's Civil Defence warned on Tuesday that a new storm is battering the besieged enclave, threatening the makeshift tents sheltering around 1.5 million displaced Palestinians.
The agency said the storm could lead to further casualties and flooding, compounding the suffering caused by Israel’s destruction of homes and infrastructure.
Local media reported that a one-year-old child died in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza due to plummeting temperatures. The death came as strong winds swept away dozens of tents near Gaza’s port, leaving families exposed to the cold overnight.
Four killed after structure collapse
On Monday evening, four people were killed and several others injured when a structure, already damaged by Israel's war, collapsed in west Gaza City. It was the latest in a series of deadly incidents caused by weakened and partially destroyed buildings left standing after Israeli attacks.
The World Health Organisation said this week that more than 18,500 patients in Gaza still require urgent medical evacuation. Its director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said 18 patients were recently evacuated to Jordan for treatment, stressing that far greater efforts are urgently needed.
Israel cuts power and water to UNRWA buildings in Jerusalem
Israeli occupation authorities have moved to cut electricity and water supplies to buildings run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, in occupied East Jerusalem, in what Palestinian officials described as a new escalation targeting the agency’s presence in the city.
Jerusalem Governorate said Israeli authorities have approved practical steps to implement a law authorising the suspension of utilities to UNRWA facilities in Jerusalem and have begun issuing official notices ahead of enforcement.
In a brief statement issued late on Monday, the governorate said electricity cut-off notices were delivered on Sunday to UNRWA buildings located inside the separation wall by Israel’s electricity company, with implementation set to begin within 15 days. The move is based on legislation passed by the Knesset on 31 December last year.
Israel's Gihon water company has also sent separate notices ordering the suspension of water supplies to properties used by the agency.
According to the governorate, an initial assessment shows that the measures affect at least ten UNRWA buildings, including schools, health clinics, training centres and administrative offices.
Among them is the agency’s main headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, raising fears of severe consequences for education, healthcare and humanitarian services provided to Palestinian refugees in Jerusalem.
The governorate said the law was passed in the second and third readings with a majority of 59 votes to seven, describing it as a clear violation of the UN Charter, international law and international legitimacy resolutions, foremost UN General Assembly Resolution 302, which established UNRWA to provide services to Palestinian refugees until a just solution is reached.
The developments come as the UN secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel’s ban on UNRWA, and the seizure of its compound in occupied East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, may violate international law and expose Israel to legal action at The Hague.
In a letter dated 8 January, Guterres said he “deplores the revocation of national laws giving effect to the privileges and immunities of UNRWA” and condemned Knesset amendments that cut off essential services to the agency, including electricity and water.
He called on Israel to repeal the legislation and return seized property, stressing that any allegations against the UN must be addressed through existing legal mechanisms rather than unilateral punitive measures.
These developments come as diplomatic efforts continue around the second phase of the truce agreement. Israeli media reported that the army is working around the clock to destroy what it claims are Hamas-linked tunnels inside the so-called Yellow Line.
Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, said on Monday that regional stability cannot be achieved without Palestinians securing their full rights, reiterating Cairo’s rejection of any plan to forcibly displace Palestinians.
Speaking alongside Ireland’s foreign minister, Helen McEntee, Abdelatty stressed that the second phase of the Gaza truce must be implemented without delay.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians since October 2023 and levelled entire neighbourhoods. Leading international human rights groups have determined that Israel’s actions amount to genocide.