INTERVIEW: UNRWA Warns Gaza Becoming Increasingly Unlivable Place

Cairo, Oct. 12 (Jiji Press)--Gaza is "becoming an increasingly unlivable place for humans" due to Israel's large-scale military operations, a senior official of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA, has said.

Akihiro Seita, head of the U.N. agency's health department, was interviewed by Jiji Press online, ahead of the one-year anniversary of the ceasefire deal between Israel and the Islamic group Hamas, which came into effect on Oct. 10, 2025.

The Israeli military's large-scale operations began in October 2023 and have left over 74,000 people dead in Gaza. Reconstruction has been slow in the Palestinian territory mainly due to Israeli troops continuing attacks and occupying a vast area of the territory even after the ceasefire agreement.

The Israeli military is believed to have seized control of about 70 pct of Gaza, expanding beyond the areas agreed by the two sides in the deal. About 2 million Gaza residents have been forced to live in the remaining 30 pct of the territory, most of them in tents.

Gaza faces persistent shortages of medical supplies due to delivery restrictions. Hygiene conditions also remain dire even under the ceasefire, as the territory has been hit by skin and other infectious diseases. "Residents' living environment has fallen apart," Seita said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]