Expanding areas under Israeli control in Gaza increase risks to civilians, UN warns
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- UN and humanitarian partners warned that expanding Israeli-controlled areas in Gaza since October's ceasefire are placing civilians at greater risk and severely constraining humanitarian operations.
- UN-verified data shows 196 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks near areas where Israeli forces are deployed between 10 October 2025 and early April, including 18 women and 43 children.
- Israeli forces have used lethal force to enforce access restrictions since the start of the ceasefire, with some humanitarian partners forced to reduce or temporarily suspend critical activities following the killing of service providers in those areas.
- Access-restricted areas now cover about 65 per cent of Gaza's land, with most zones off limits to residents and all requiring humanitarian organizations to coordinate access; access by sea also remains prohibited.
- Families in Beit Lahia fled after Israeli forces advanced, with three tents reportedly set ablaze by incendiary munitions dropped from the air and yellow cement blocks placed to mark expansion of the so-called 'Yellow Line.'
- Humanitarian agencies warned that skin diseases and acute watery diarrhoea continue to spread amid overcrowding and poor sanitation, while less than a quarter of this year's humanitarian appeal for the OPT has been funded so far.
Why it matters: The UN's verified tally of 196 Palestinian deaths near Israeli-controlled zones—combined with access restrictions now covering 65% of Gaza—shows that the October ceasefire framework has not curbed lethal enforcement of movement limits, leaving civilians concentrated in a shrinking space while aid groups operate with under a quarter of needed funding.
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