Southern Gaza UNRWA chief warns of refugee calamity

An Israeli military assault into an overcrowded south of Gaza may lead many of 1 million Gazan refugees, including 900,000 sheltering in UN buildings, to try to push over the border into Egypt, the head of the UN's Palestine relief agency, UNRWA, has warned.

- Patrick Wintour

Fresh back from a second overnight visit to Gaza where he met Palestinians in tears at their loss of dignity, homes and livelihoods, Philippe Lazzarini urged Israel to think through the consequences of an offensive in the south if the currently temporary truce in the fighting is not extended.

"We already have a staggering human tragedy," he said, adding the prospect of a further assault filled him with deep anxiety and foreboding.

"We are in a race against time, and already disease is becoming as much a threat as the bombardment [..] The combined impact of the bombardment and the siege has already pushed people to the south, if there is fighting there is indeed a higher likelihood that they might wish to flee further south and beyond the border," he told the Guardian.

Lazzarini has become one of the most outspoken UN humanitarian officials in recent weeks, urging Israel to abide by the rules of law and proportionality. He is concerned about the impact of fighting in the south, which he described as "completely overloaded" after Israel urged civilians in the north of the territory to move south for their own safety.

"The Gaza Strip was already known as being one of the most crowded places in the world. And now, you have the majority of the population moved towards the south," he said.

"So, you have the almost complete concentration of the population in half the territory - an area that cannot support such a presence because of even the lack of water.