UN launches 2.8-bln-dollar flash appeal for Palestine

UNITED NATIONS, April 17 (Xinhua) -- The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Wednesday launched a flash appeal worth 2.822 billion U.S. dollars for the occupied Palestinian territory.

The money will be used to provide assistance to 3.1 million people in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, through the end of the year, said UNOCHA.

"For this response, we need to see major changes to operating conditions on the ground. Humanitarian organizations must have safe and sustained access to all people in need across the Gaza Strip and West Bank," said the office.

"We need more entry and supply routes by land into Gaza, including to the north, as well as the use of Ashdod port," the office said, adding they also need fewer constraints on their movements inside Gaza, visas and permits for aid workers, timely and flexible funding, and need to be able to bring in critical humanitarian items.

Israel launched a large-scale military offensive against Hamas in Gaza in response to a deadly surprise attack by Hamas in southern Israel on Oct. 7 last year, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 others were taken hostage.

The Israeli onslaught has so far led to more than 33,700 deaths and more than 76,000 injuries, as well as an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.