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With Gaza in the midst of a humanitarian disaster, UN says ceasefire must hold

Destruction from Israeli air attacks in Gaza, February 2025
Destruction from Israeli air attacks in Gaza, February 2025 Copyright  Abdel Kareem Hana/Copyright 2025 The AP. All rights reserved
Copyright Abdel Kareem Hana/Copyright 2025 The AP. All rights reserved
By Maria Psara
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The head of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), Jorge Moreira da Silva, made the appeal after a visit to Gaza on Thursday.

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The head of UNOPS told Euronews that the ceasefire must hold in Gaza, as the Palestinian territory remains in the midst of a humanitarian disaster.

The UN agency is providing fuel to Gaza, which is the only source of energy, and now also facilitates all aid into Gaza after Israel declared the previous agency doing the work, UNRWA, illegal.

"70% of all infrastructure is destroyed," Jorge Moreira da Silva said after visiting the Gaza Strip on Thursday.

"It's fundamental to bring all humanitarian aid that is needed in terms of emergencies. But it's fundamental to prepare for early recover," he added.

"And orderly recovery means removing the rubble, rehabilitating the roads, bringing electricity, bringing sanitation, and constructing hospitals and schools. And this is a huge responsibility and requires the international community to get mobilised," he explained.

When asked about President Trump’s decision to freeze aid to Gaza and what role the EU could now play in its rehabiliation, da Silva said ''I prefer not to comment on any member state specific decision'', he said. ''I would only say that this is a moment where solidarity is needed in the Middle East. We have the obligation to provide support to the people in Lebanon, in Syria, in Gaza, in the West Bank."

The European Commission announced last month a new humanitarian aid package for Gaza worth €120 million, bringing total EU humanitarian assistance to Gaza to over €450 million since 2023. EU Air Bridge Flights have already delivered over 3,800 tonnes of aid.

The UNOPS head says he is confident the EU is committed to aiding the Palestinians.

"I have no doubt that the European Union will play an important role. I know the European Union. I've been a member of Parliament, I was a minister in Portugal. So I know the EU policy and I know how committed it is," he said.

Da Silva's Gaza visit was part of his UNOPS mission in the Middle East, a region he consideres to be in a critical moment. "We decided to engage in this mission to the Middle East because we are in a critical moment, a moment of hope, of opportunity and responsibility, new leadership in Lebanon, new regime in Syria, ceasefire in Gaza. So this represents a moment of responsibility and opportunity."

With all three of the above having gone through extensive destruction due to war, early reconstruction has become imperative, "particularly in the sectors where is plays an important role, which is infrastructure," concludes da Silva.

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