A man stands amidst the debris of his bombed home in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Feb 13, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

GENEVA/AMMAN - Military operations in Rafah could lead to slaughter in Gaza and put a fragile humanitarian operation at death's door, UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths warned Tuesday.

In a statement issued in Geneva, he noted the warnings from the international community against the dangerous consequences of a ground invasion in Rafah in southern Gaza, saying that the government of Israel cannot continue to ignore these calls.

He said people in Rafah and the rest of Gaza are victims of an assault that is unparalleled in its intensity, brutality and scope.

READ MORE: Israeli forces rescue 2 hostages in Rafah, kill 67 Palestinians

Stressing that humanitarian workers have been doing the near-impossible to assist people in need for more than four months, he warned that the humanitarian workers “lack the safety guarantees, the aid supplies and the staff capacity to keep this operation afloat".

The UNRWA said countries that suspended their support to the agency should reconsider their decisions, and avoid forcing the agency to reduce its operations in March, including its operations in the Gaza Strip

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Tuesday cited the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza as reporting that another 133 Palestinians were killed, and 162 Palestinians were injured, mostly in Rafah and Khan Younis, by Israeli attacks within 24 hours.  

Independent UNRWA review to start 

Also on Tuesday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said countries that suspended their support to the agency should reconsider their decisions, and avoid forcing the agency to reduce its operations in March, including its operations in the Gaza Strip.

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Juliette Touma, the director of communications at UNRWA, said in the Jordanian capital Amman that the suspension of funding by 16 donor countries, mostly Western, could deprive the agency of more than 51 percent of its expected income for the year 2024, endangering vital humanitarian response in Gaza and throughout the region, the state-run Petra news agency reported.

Touma warned of a famine in northern Gaza, which is barely receiving aid, "after the closure of the Kerem Shalom crossing for six days", pointing out that there are many restrictions on aid entry. Before the conflict, she added, 500 trucks entered the area, and now only 100 trucks do so at best.

Israeli soldiers operate inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Feb 13, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

Lazzarini said the independent panel's review on UNRWA will begin on Wednesday, and called on all parties to actively cooperate with the review

Regarding the deteriorating situation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Touma said: "We need at least a humanitarian ceasefire, and the fear in Rafah now is continuously escalating amid the presence of more than 1.4 million displaced persons with the absence of infrastructure and a saddening humanitarian situation."

READ MORE: Gaza: At least 25 killed in Israeli bombing on Rafah city

Meanwhile, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said the Israeli government's cooperation has "utmost importance" for an independent panel's review of the agency.

Lazzarini said the independent panel's review on UNRWA will begin on Wednesday. He called on all parties to actively cooperate with the review.

"It is of utmost importance that the government of Israel also cooperate" so that the independent panel could get information "more than the allegations", Lazzarini said.

ALSO READ: Arab League chief: Ending UNRWA's role endangers region

He also expressed concern about the humanitarian crisis in southern Gaza's Rafah area, where people are in fear of a possible "large-scale military operation". The local people were asked to move, he said. "But the question is, where to move?"

Israel accused 12 UNRWA employees of having participated in the Hamas's attack on southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023. Following the allegations, 16 donor countries, including the United States, Britain, and Canada, have announced their decision to suspend their funding for the agency.  

Last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed an independent panel to review the operations of the agency. The final report of the independent panel is expected to be completed and published in late April.