The World Health Organization on Monday warned there were only "24 hours of water, electricity and fuel left" in the Gaza Strip before "a real catastrophe" sets in.
WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Ahmed Al-Mandhari said the bombarded, besieged territory must be allowed to receive convoys of aid, currently stuck at the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.
If assistance does not arrive, doctors will have to "prepare death certificates for their patients", he told AFP.
On the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, trucks carrying badly needed aid have been waiting for days as mediators press for a cease-fire that would allow them to enter Gaza and allow foreigners to leave. Rafah, Gaza's only connection to Egypt, was shut down nearly a week ago because of Israeli airstrikes.
Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Israel “has not taken a position to open the crossing from the Gaza side.” The Israeli government did not respond to a request for comment.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering in U.N. facilities are on less than 1 liter (1 quart) of water per day. Hospitals warn they are on the verge of collapse, with emergency generators that power machines like ventilators and incubators down to about one day of fuel and supplies of medicine almost exhausted.
The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,750 Palestinians have been killed and 9,700 wounded since the fighting erupted, more than in the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted over six weeks. That makes this the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides.
(With inputs from AFP and AP)
