UN official warns ‘hell is settling in’ as it struggles with Gaza humanitarian crisis

Amna Nawaz:

The Gaza Health Ministry run by Hamas today released 200-plus pages listing those killed since Israel began its retaliatory air campaign after the October 7 terror attacks.

On the list, more than 7,000 people, nearly 3,000 of whom were children, this an apparent response to President Biden's remarks yesterday doubting the official toll numbers in Gaza.

Inside Gaza today, the United Nations warned it is on a humanitarian precipice.

Nick Schifrin speaks to a United Nations official and reports on Israel's plans for its expected ground offensive.

Nick Schifrin:

It is not an invasion, but the largest Israeli incursion into Gaza yet. Tanks crossed into Gaza early this morning, as seen in this Israeli Defense Forces video, to — quote — "prepare the battlefield."

But Israel is still preparing and debating its own plans for the coming ground offensive. And, today, war cabinet member, opposition leader and former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Benny Gantz warned of a long war.

Benny Gantz, Israeli War Cabinet Minister (through translator):

The maneuver is only one stage in a long-term process that includes security, political and social aspects that will last for years.

Nick Schifrin:

Complicating Israel's mission, more than 220 hostages held by Hamas, only four of whom have been released. Hamas vows to release all of them if Israel stops the bombing, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian reiterated today in New York.

Hossein Amir Abdollahian, Iranian Foreign Minister (through translator):

Hamas is ready to release civilian prisoners. On the other hand, the world should support the release of 6,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

Nick Schifrin:

Iran helps fund the record number of rockets fired into Israel from Gaza, like this direct hit today into a residential building in Petah Tikva.

In Gaza, the direct hits are relentless. Today, Israel launched more than 250 airstrikes and said it killed the co-planner of the October 7 terrorist attacks. Senior Hamas officials live within and fire from residential neighborhoods. Israeli airstrikes have destroyed about one out of every 20 Gazan buildings in one of the densest parts of the planet.

Northern Gaza's Beit Hanoun before and after the airstrikes. Beit Hanoun's Izbat neighborhood before and after. And al Karama before and after; 2,000 miles away in Brussels, the European Union today called for humanitarian corridors and pauses to speed the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid.

Dr. Nedal Abed, Al Quds Hospital:

In the coming days, it's very difficult if we don't — if we didn't get any fuel in the system.

Nick Schifrin:

Dr. Nedal Abed is an orthopedic surgeon affiliated with Doctors Without Borders in North Gaza's Al-Quds hospital, which said it received an Israeli evacuation order this week.

Dr. Nedal Abed:

We don't have the capacity to do normal work. We operated a patient on the ground. We — some patients left to die in these. It was a very difficult situation. And this event, actually, it's happened every day and in every hospital.

Nick Schifrin:

His family, seen in happier times, are worried about him.

On Sunday, an explosion hit near the hospital. He says the majority of his patients are children, younger than his own daughters. His family's home was also destroyed. His 12-year-old, Noor, (ph) lost every toy, but saved her cat.

Dr. Nedal Abed:

Also, my house was destructed in the building where I live. And that's happened with a lot of medical staff members here.

We lost many, many doctors, many, many nurses, many, many officer for ambulances. We lost a lot of personnel, medical personnel in Gaza. We don't have the luxury, actually, to bring psychological teams aboard. I try to do some work now today.

One girl's around 10 years old age. She lost all the family. She start to cry. I didn't know what to do. I am a surgeon, but I try.

Nick Schifrin:

And joining us now from just outside Rafah in Southern Gaza is Tom White, the head of UNRWA's operations in Gaza.

Tom White, thank you very much for making the time. Welcome to the "NewsHour."

You have said today that your fuel is — quote — "almost exhausted." What does that mean and what is its impact?

Thomas White, Director of UNRWA Gaza: Well, I go actually beyond fuel.

In terms of our whole operation, we are literally exhausted. We are rationing what reserves of fuel we have now in Gaza. Essentially, what we should be getting to hospitals, what we should be getting to bakeries to bake bread, we are rationing those supplies.

And then, on the other hand, we have teams who are running displacement centers, for example. We can't get them basic sanitation. We can't provide enough shelter for people in these locations, so some really difficult choices. Which communities are going to go without essential humanitarian support?

And it's going to get to a point where people become very ill and some people are going to lose their lives because we can't get the assistance that they need.

Nick Schifrin:

Israel is blocking fuel from coming into Gaza because it says Hamas steals fuel and already holds large stockpiles.

So, have you seen any evidence that Hamas stockpiles fuel?

Thomas White:

Look, I'm not seeing any evidence that Hamas is stockpiling fuel.

What I can say is, I know what we're doing with the fuel that we have got. With the fuel reserves that we can access from within Gaza, we are making sure that is going to desalination plants, it's going to bakeries to produce bread.

Nick Schifrin:

More than 600,000 Gazans are internally displaced and sheltering at some 150 schools-turned-shelters. That is three times those schools' intended capacity.

Do you have what you need? Do you have the ability to keep those people safe?

Thomas White:

We don't have the humanitarian supplies to look after those people in those shelters.

Conditions in the shelters are getting very desperate. But our major concern is also that these people are sheltering under a U.N. flag, and we cannot guarantee them protection. We have had over 40 of our installations with collateral damage. We have had five direct hits. It's cost the lives of 17 Gazans sheltering under the U.N. flag, and 281 people have been injured in our shelters because of fire.

Nick Schifrin:

I reported from inside Gaza during the 2014 war, the last time Israel launched a ground incursion into Gaza for about six weeks.

And I personally saw how Hamas fired rockets from next to UNRWA schools and stole supplies from UNRWA schools. Why aren't you able to prevent that?

Thomas White:

Look, we're calling on all parties to the conflict, everybody involved in this conflict, to stop this war.

We're calling for a humanitarian cease-fire. The reality is, we are operating in a — in many cases, in an urban battlefield. It's very chaotic. There are firing positions from within the urban population and, of course, coming the other way, fire into urban areas.

So, my concern is that we have got a large number of civilians who are caught in an active conflict zone.

Nick Schifrin:

There is a very extreme shortage of numbers of trucks coming in to Gaza compared to what you need and compared, certainly, to what used to come into Gaza before October the 7th.

What do you believe is causing the numbers of trucks to be so limited?

Thomas White:

So, what we're dealing with is a verification process that is run by the Israelis down on the Egyptian-Israeli border.

That process is very slow. It has been problematic. We really need to have a verification process with the Israelis that enables a processing of well over 100 trucks a day.

Nick Schifrin:

And, finally, sir, the commissioner-general of UNRWA today described Gaza as a place where — quote — "There is not much humanity left and hell is settling in."

What does that look like for you? How deep is Gaza's despair?

Thomas White:

People are questioning, what does the future hold? Where am I going to be safe?

There is so much uncertainty, so much fear that I really question, where is our humanity to be allowing this level of death and destruction on the Gazan population?

Nick Schifrin:

Tom White, head of Gaza operations for UNRWA, thank you very much.

Thomas White:

Thank you. Thank you.