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Current Requirements (US$)$4.07 billion
Crisis overview
Since 7 October 2023, the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) has drastically changed. Access to lifesaving services, already hindered by occupation, conflict, political instability, movement barriers, and lack of adherence to international law, has dramatically decreased and protection concerns have surged.
The speed and scale of the killing and destruction in the Gaza Strip (Gaza) are unlike anything seen in recent history. As of 31 October 2024, a total of 43,061 Palestinians, including at least 7,216 women, 3,447 older persons and 13,319 children, have been killed in Gaza since 7 October 2023. More than one hundred thousand people have been injured, many suffering permanent disability, and some ten thousand people are believed to be under rubble. In the past year, nearly all of Gaza’s population has been displaced with nowhere safe to go. The UN estimates 1.9 million people, 90 per cent of the population, are internally displaced, with 40 per cent near flood risk areas. Across Gaza, people lack basic essentials for survival, including food, shelter, safe water and medical care. Over 60 per cent of homes and 65 per cent of roads are damaged, the health and waste management systems are devastated, and safe water is scarce.
Everyone in Gaza feels as if they have been put on death row. If not killed by bombs or bullets, they are slowly suffocating from a lack of the basic means of survival. At the time of writing, people in the besieged area of North Gaza have received virtually no assistance for 52 days. Israeli authorities have only allowed humanitarian access for medical evacuations on an exceptional basis. Food distribution points, kitchens and bakeries in North Gaza, have shut down due to lack of food, flour, fuel and military operations. The risk of famine persists, as conditions deteriorate. On 8 November, the IPC Famine Review Committee stated that starvation, malnutrition, and mortality due to malnutrition and disease are likely rising rapidly in these areas. Famine thresholds may have already been surpassed or could be crossed soon. Throughout Gaza, critical health services have been disrupted, posing long-term risks. Hospitals and medical facilities have been repeatedly hit, and those that remain partially functional do so with only a handful of staff, and without sufficient fuel or critical supplies.
Gaza, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Amid escalating hostilities in Khan Younis, displaced Palestinians wait at an Israeli checkpoint between two tanks for entry into Rafah governorate in southern Gaza. Tensions are high as residents face evacuation orders as the conflict intensifies.
OCHAGaza is also the most dangerous place in the world and the most challenging to deliver humanitarian assistance. Crossing points into Gaza remain restricted or closed, humanitarian law and notification mechanisms not respected, humanitarian staff have been detained and held at gunpoint at checkpoints, and a breakdown of public order and safety inside Gaza have left people reliant on a literal trickle of aid.
As of 5 November, at least 318 humanitarian workers have been killed in Gaza, while medical staff are regularly targeted, detained, or killed while attempting to provide care. Roads are damaged and littered with unexploded ordnance. A targeted campaign to discredit the UN, most recently UNRWA, risks further disruptions in humanitarian operations with potential catalytic regional and global implications. Without UNRWA, the delivery of education, food, shelter and health to most of Gaza’s population would grind to a halt. The level of humanitarian assistance that has been allowed into Gaza is completely inadequate and not commensurate with the needs of over 2 million people. The result is heightened desperation, rising levels of malnutrition, gender-based violence, morbidity and death. Despite the immense risks and challenges faced, humanitarian agencies remain committed to deliver aid when and where they can.
At the same time, violence in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has sharply escalated. The use of lethal force by Israeli forces, along with rampant settler violence and house demolitions, have led to a dramatic rise in fatalities, widespread destruction and forced displacement. At least 700 Palestinians have been killed since 7 October 2023—the highest number in more than two decades—and 4,555 displaced. 2024 also saw the longest and largest military operations in the West Bank since the Second Intifada as the construction of new settlements, land grabs, demolitions and settler violence all continue.
Humanitarian access in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
In September 2024, 83 per cent of all humanitarian movements to northern Gaza were either denied or impeded. Humanitarian access is critical to ensure that people with urgent needs receive critical aid.
Response priorities in 2025
The UN and partners estimate that at least $6.6 billion is required to address the humanitarian needs of 3.3 million people in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Out of this total, the 2025 OPT Flash Appeal is calling for $4 billion for UN agencies, INGO, and NGO partners to address some of the most urgent and critical needs for 3 million people based on the assumption that humanitarian actors will continue to face a constrained operating environment in 2025, making it impossible to scale up operations effectively. To operate at scale, the humanitarian community would require predictable supply, safe access and the ability to reach people where they are. None of these requirements are met in the case of Gaza.
The Appeal will target the entire population of Gaza, estimated at 2.1 million people, and 0.9 million people in the West Bank. For the West Bank, this reflects an incremental increase compared to 2024 resulting from rising needs linked to the deteriorating situation.
Deir al-Balah, in the Gaza Strip, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Malak, 14, holds a bottle of water she filled from a UNICEF-supported water tank, made possible through support from the governments of Australia and Sweden.
UNICEF/El BabaThe magnitude of this response and operational constraints are beyond what has been seen before in OPT and in other contexts. Achieving the vision laid out in this appeal requires critical changes in the operating environment, including:
- Humanitarian actors must have safe and sustained access to all people in need across the Gaza Strip and West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
- Humanitarian goods must be allowed to enter Gaza at scale, requiring the opening of additional crossings into Gaza, supply routes within Gaza, and the resumption of commercial sector operations.
- The Humanitarian Notification System must be respected.
- Entry of critical humanitarian items, including communications equipment and protective gear for humanitarian staff.
- Funding must be timely and flexible to allow humanitarian actors to adapt programming to a highly dynamic context.
- Visas and permits for UN and INGO staff to support Gaza operations from Jerusalem, and for staff to move within the West Bank.
Jabalya, Gaza, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Palestinians stand along a road, awaiting crucial aid deliveries during an OCHA-led reconnaissance mission. Families depend on these essential supplies to endure the ongoing instability.
OCHAThe main response priority is to scale up operations to address the urgent needs across the OPT. The 2025 Flash Appeal outlines the actions needed to meet lifesaving requirements. Activities will focus on delivering emergency supplies – including food, water, medical supplies, shelter, NFIs, education materials—while providing critical services, including protection, until local services and markets are restored. The Flash Appeal includes activities to address the needs of displaced families, both inside and outside emergency shelters, including those staying with host communities in Gaza and those affected by settler violence, demolitions and military operations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Early recovery activities are included when they offer the most cost-effective and efficient way of providing humanitarian assistance, or when they are essential to enabling such assistance. Recovery and reconstruction considerations are anticipated to be reflected in subsequent plans when the situation allows.
Protection underpins the overall response with specific focus on the intersectional impacts of the crisis, especially on women and girls. A ‘twin-track’ approach ensures protection and diversity is embedded within all cluster programming. With the breakdown of traditional communications channels in Gaza, humanitarian actors have come together to find innovative approaches to drive community awareness and engagement to ensure accountability to affected people and protect against sexual abuse and exploitation.
Gaza, Occupied Palestinian Territory:
Despite extremely challenging conditions, the polio vaccination campaign has resumed in northern Gaza, led by the Palestinian Ministry of Health in collaboration with UNICEF, WHO, UNRWA, and partners.
UNICEF/Media ClinicFinancial requirements
The UN and partners estimate that at least US $6.6 billion is required to address the humanitarian needs of 3.3 million people in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The 2025 OPT Flash Appeal calls for $4 billion for UN agencies, INGO, and NGO partners to address some of the most urgent and critical needs for three million people based on the assumption that humanitarian actors will continue to face a constrained operating environment in 2025, making it impossible to scale operations effectively. The ask reflects a 19 per cent increase from the estimated financial requirements for 2024. The increase is driven by the deepening needs and rising costs of operating in OPT, most dramatically in Gaza, where rising security, logistics, demurrage, and staff costs are inversely correlated with operating constraints. Growing needs in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, also contribute to the overall rise.
The Flash Appeal employs a unit-based cost (UBC) methodology in which cluster coordinators estimate the required cost of priority activities for 2025 based on the information available at the time of writing. The Flash appeal may be updated later in the year as the situation continues to evolve.
Occupied Palestinian Territory
https://humanitarianaction.info/article/occupied-palestinian-territory-2
Evolution of the humanitarian response
05-Mar-2026
Evolution of the humanitarian response
| Year | Type | People in need | People targeted | Requirements ($) | Funding ($) | % Funded |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |
3.6 million
|
3 million
|
$4.06 billion
|
$296.5 million
|
7.3%
|
|
| 2025 |
3.3 million
|
3 million
|
$4.07 billion
|
$2.55 billion
|
62.6%
|
|
| 2024 |
3.1 million
|
2.9 million
|
$3.42 billion
|
$2.89 billion
|
84.3%
|
|
| 2023 |
2.1 million
|
1.6 million
|
$376.7 million
|
$373.7 million
|
99.2%
|
|
| 2023 |
1 million
|
1.1 million
|
$629.1 million
|
$637.6 million
|
101%
|
|
| 2022 |
2.1 million
|
1.6 million
|
$509.9 million
|
$465.2 million
|
91.2%
|
|
| 2021 |
0
|
0
|
$94.9 million
|
$63.8 million
|
67.3%
|
|
| 2021 |
2.5 million
|
1.8 million
|
$417.6 million
|
$376.7 million
|
90.2%
|
|
| 2020 |
2.4 million
|
1.5 million
|
$420.4 million
|
$327.4 million
|
77.9%
|
|
| 2019 |
2.5 million
|
1.4 million
|
$350.6 million
|
$292.5 million
|
83.4%
|
2024 in review: response highlights and consequences of inaction
Response highlights
Gaza remains a war zone with active and ongoing military operations. Evacuation orders continue to be issued, forcing people to constantly move. Humanitarian operations have also been forced to repeatedly move their base of operations and programmes. Asset losses have been high, and the psychological toll, great. Critical health, water, sanitation, education, housing, and telecommunications infrastructure has been destroyed.
Amidst unprecedented challenges, humanitarian actors have continued to operate. Doing so has required that they constantly adapt, innovate and identify creative solutions to complex problems. Despite facing significant challenges and operating in extreme conditions, notable humanitarian achievements include:
Critical care
Over 87,000 injured in Gaza and 5,000 in the West Bank received critical care, including emergency medical interventions after mass casualty events
Primary healthcare
Eight field hospitals were established, and medical points and temporary facilities were created to expand primary healthcare
Emergency obstetric and newborn care
Two clinics for sexual reproductive health were deployed to offer emergency obstetric and newborn care
Vaccination
Nearly 557,000 children were vaccinated with a second dose of the polio vaccine, reaching 94 per cent of all children under the age of 10 throughout Gaza
Food assistance
Some 1.8 million people were reached with food assistance, including 6,195,767 hot meals
Nutrition
Nutrition services were offered at 300 feeding sites, 100 outpatient sites, and four stabilization centers
Hygiene
120,000 hygiene kits were distributed, achieving 9 per cent of the target
Sanitation
Faced with a severely inadequate waste management system and a complete absence of proper sanitation infrastructure, 6,000 latrines were built for individuals in spontaneous displacement sites
Women and girls
Six safe spaces for women and girls were established, aiding 4,788 people
Menstrual health items
168,285 people were provided with menstrual health items
Mental health and psychosocial support
Mental health and psychosocial support are ongoing
Shelter and NFIs
293,000 non-food kits, 73,600 tents, and 81,800 sealing-off kits were distributed
The OPT is an example of the cost of inaction, notably the absence of sustained and dedicated attention or commitment to driving a political solution to the protracted conflict and occupation. People’s resilience and coping mechanisms are exhausted, the most acutely affected are children, women, older people and people with disabilities. Resilience cannot be measured like calories or litres of water. You only know it is exhausted after it is too late.
Consequences of inaction due to:
Underfunding
• Provision of MHPSS services has been reduced to a triage situation, at times meaning that families living side by side at the time of a violent military operation will not receive the same services due to insufficient number of qualified MHPSS personnel.
• Persistent shortage of essential medical supplies and funding for mobile clinics in the West Bank.
• Water access is limited in Bethlehem and Hebron, due to funding and movement restrictions, exacerbated by Mekorot water supply cuts.
• Increased drop-out rates and continued education losses due to inability to provide sufficient educational support services in West Bank and Gaza.
Access constraints, attacks against aid workers/facilities
• As of 5 November, at least 318 humanitarian workers have been killed in Gaza.
• WHO has verified 516 attacks on health facilities and medical transport in Gaza, resulting in 765 deaths and almost 1000 injuries, between 7 October 2023 and 31 October 2024.
• Humanitarian aid faces severe access restrictions in, out and within Gaza. In October 2024, 43 per cent of all humanitarian movements coordinated with the Israeli authorities to reach people in need were denied, and a further 16 per cent impeded, leaving many without essential aid.
• In the West Bank, violence, demolitions, and movement restrictions have led to increased displacement and insecurity. Movement restrictions and denials of visas and permits by Israeli authorities inhibit the ability of humanitarian actors to provide assistance.
Gaza Strip
• There is a strong likelihood that famine is imminent in areas within the northern Gaza Strip. Without immediate action, within days, to avert and alleviate the situation, this scenario can materialize.
• Healthcare is crippled, with 84 per cent of facilities damaged and only 55 per cent of bed capacity available, leaving people injured or ill, unable to meet their critical health needs.
• Education is undermined. 658,000 children missed a full school year; and risk missing the second year of formal schooling; 57,000 are unable to start first grade. The situation jeopardizes their lives and futures.
• Over 1.1 million people lack safe water, and solid waste collection is constrained, posing a risk to public health.
West Bank
• Ambulances and healthcare are disrupted; half of primary health facilities operate just two days a week due to the fiscal crisis.
• Access to education for 806,000 students is hindered by violence, risking learning losses and increased child labour.
• Worsening food insecurity which is addressed through cash assistance, provision of food assistance, and agricultural and livelihoods support.
• Failure to restore WASH infrastructure, the destruction of which has been notable during recent military operations, risks leaving communities without reliable water.
• Preparedness for service providers and communities against future shocks will incur increase costs and extend response times.