The 24 hours prior to the pause witnessed an intensification of Israeli strikes from air, land and sea in multiple areas throughout Gaza, alongside ground battles with Palestinian armed groups to the north of Wadi Gaza (hereafter: the north) and in the Middle Area. In one of the deadliest incidents, at about 20:00 on 23 November, a school in Jabalia was hit in an airstrike, reportedly killing 27 people and injuring another 93.
The pause has allowed the UN to scale up the delivery of assistance into and across Gaza. On 24 November, 200 trucks were dispatched from Nitzana to the Rafah crossing, and 137 trucks of goods were offloaded by the UNRWA reception point in Gaza, making it the largest volume of aid since the resumption of humanitarian deliveries on 21 October. Additionally, 129,000 litres of fuel and, for the first time since 7 October, four trucks carrying cooking gas, crossed into Gaza.
The agreement reportedly involves the gradual release of hostages and detainees. On 24 November, 24 hostages held in Gaza and 39 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons were released. The hostages released included 13 Israelis – nine women and four children – and 11 foreign nationals. Among the Palestinians detainees were 24 women and 15 boys.
It is estimated that several thousands of Palestinians attempted to move from the area south of Wadi Gaza (hereafter: the south) to the north on 24 November, despite an Israeli military warning that returning to the north is prohibited. In several reported incidents in the morning and the afternoon, Israeli forces opened fire and threw teargas canisters at people heading northwards; at least one person was reportedly killed, and dozens injured.
Read the report: Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel Flash Update #49
In the first day of the humanitarian pause, the UN scaled up the delivery of humanitarian assistance into and across Gaza. Hundreds of thousands were assisted with food, water, medical supplies and other essential humanitarian items. Photo by WFP
