Palestinians walk through the destruction left by the Israeli offensive on Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, March 8, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

GAZA/JERUSALEM – Commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East Philippe Lazzarini has said that the agency "has not yet received any evidence confirming Israel's allegations that UNRWA employees participated in the Oct 7 attack”.

In a press statement on Friday, Lazzarini also said it would be wrong to dismantle the UNRWA before reaching a permanent political solution.

In January, the organization was rocked by Israel's accusations that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the Oct 7 attacks in southern Israel, carried out by Hamas. 

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

It led to several countries halting contributions of approximately $440 million, representing nearly half of UNRWA's yearly funding.

Lazzarini said late last month that the agency is facing repeated calls by Israel to dismantle UNRWA and freeze its funding by donors. 

‘Indescribable situation’

Lazzarini also said the situation in the Gaza Strip defies description and has not been seen "in any previous crisis".

Airdrops cannot replace land aid.

Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-general, UNRWA

"We are facing a tragedy that is not related to food," Lazzarini said in a press statement, adding that people in Gaza suffer from deliberate starvation operations that could have been avoided.

He warned that the Gaza Strip, inhabited by about 2.35 million people, is on the verge of entering into a famine, and "children there are dying due to hunger and thirst," stressing the need to open land crossings for aid trucks to enter Gaza.

"Airdrops cannot replace land aid," he added.

According to the Gaza-based Health Ministry, at least 20 people, mostly children, have died as a result of malnutrition and drought caused by the war.

An aircraft airdrops humanitarian aid over Gaza the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, March 8, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

5 Palestinians killed in aid airdrop malfunction

At least five Palestinians were killed on Friday and several others wounded in northwestern Gaza when they were hit by airdropped aid boxes with a parachute failing to open, Palestinian sources said.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza, said in a statement that the aid was dropped in an unprofessional and unprecedented manner on the heads and houses of residents in the northwest area of Gaza City.

No further details were provided, but eyewitnesses said the aid airdropped by aircraft over Gaza City fell freely without properly opening their parachutes.

Meanwhile, the media office of the Hamas-run government said in a press release that the airdrop operations were "ineffective and not the optimal method," calling for the immediate opening of land crossings to allow for aid delivery to the territory to prevent an imminent famine, especially in northern Gaza.

It added that people in Gaza suffer greatly from severe shortages of food, water, medicine, and shelters.

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"As a result of the famine disaster, at least 20 people have died, and the number is likely to increase daily due to hunger, malnutrition, and drought," the statement said.

Several countries, including Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, France, the Netherlands, and the United States, have been conducting joint operations for about a week to drop food aid to the strip.

A young Palestinian girl sells homemade sweets to children at a camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 7, 2024, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Hamas movement. (PHOTO / AFP)

‘Truce, Israeli withdrawal a must’

The Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said on Friday that a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza are essential conditions for any prisoner exchange agreement.

In a statement, the Brigades' spokesperson Abu Ubaydah emphasized that there would be no compromise on these demands.

He accused the Israeli government of "deceit" in the negotiation process, which he described as marked by "confusion and bewilderment".

He also highlighted the plight of Gaza's residents, particularly children suffering from malnutrition, adding that the hostages taken by Hamas are also affected by the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

"Some of them are suffering from illness due to lack of food and medicine," said the spokesman.

On Thursday, Hamas announced that its delegation had left Cairo to consult with the movement's leadership on ceasefire negotiations, reaffirming its commitment to negotiations aimed at ending hostilities, assisting displaced individuals, and providing humanitarian aid to Gaza's residents.

Talks have been ongoing in Egypt, with representatives from Qatar, the United States, and Hamas aiming to establish a ceasefire in Gaza before Ramadan, which begins around March 10 this year.

An Israeli tank moves near the Israeli-Gaza border as seen from southern Israel, March 6, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

Israel ‘welcomes’ maritime aid corridor

Israel on Friday "welcomed" the inauguration of the maritime corridor from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip aimed at boosting the humanitarian aid to the embattled Palestinian enclave.

"The Cypriot initiative will allow the increase of humanitarian aid to Gaza," Israeli Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lior Haiat said in a statement, without specifying the time frame for the arrival of the first shipment.

Haiat noted that Israel will control the entry of aid into Gaza by "conducting security checks in accordance with Israeli standards."

During a visit to the Cypriot port of Larnaca, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Friday it is hopeful that the maritime corridor for providing humanitarian aid to Gaza would open this Sunday, according to a press release by the Cypriot Ministry of Interior.

ALSO READ: Children are dying from hunger in Gaza, says UN official

The EU chief noted that an initial pilot operation will be launched Friday for the maritime corridor initiated by Cyprus, the EU, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Britain, and the United States. 

The delivery of aid to Gaza is of critical urgency as the humanitarian crisis in the enclave has been worsening since Israel launched a large-scale offensive in Gaza to retaliate against the Oct 7 deadly Hamas attack. The Israeli offensive has so far killed more than 30,800 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.