Gaza developments | Palestinians start New Year amid Israeli airstrikes

Pars Today — The New Year began for the people of Gaza while Israel continues its attacks in violation of the ceasefire.

Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip welcomed 2026 amid airstrikes and bombardments by the occupying Israeli regime. Since the ceasefire agreement, nearly three months ago, the occupiers have repeatedly violated its terms.

According to Pars Today, citing Tasnim News Agency, Palestinian sources reported on Thursday that the Israeli army’s helicopters continued attacks on Rafah in southern Gaza. Reports also indicate that Khan Yunis was targeted by Israeli fighter jets.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip reported a rise in casualties from the ongoing genocide campaign carried out by the Israeli regime against the Palestinian people since October 2023, with the total number of martyrs and injured reaching 71,271 and 171,233, respectively.

The Ministry’s report states that since the establishment of the ceasefire on October 11, 2025—which Israel has never honored—416 civilians have been martyred and 1,153 injured in attacks by the Israeli occupiers. During this period, the bodies of 683 martyrs have also been recovered from under the rubble.

Outlook on Gaza’s complex crises in 2026

Data from international and Palestinian organizations, as well as relevant ministries, indicate that without immediate and serious action to address the Gaza crisis, the humanitarian situation will remain a constant concern for its residents. The main challenges they face are outlined below:

Injured and patients: Israel continues to impose severe restrictions on the entry of medicines and medical equipment into Gaza, as well as on the travel of the injured and patients seeking treatment outside the Strip. If this situation persists, 2026 will begin with an unprecedented health crisis in Gaza. More than 170,000 people have been injured, of whom at least 20,000 require long-term rehabilitation services.

Additionally, 4,800 individuals have suffered amputations, 1,200 are paralyzed, and 1,200 have lost their eyesight. About 22,000 patients need to leave Gaza for medical care, including 5,200 children and 12,500 cancer patients who are fighting for their lives.

Alarm raised over a new deadly disease among Gaza’s displaced

Amid the ongoing and worsening humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip, medical sources have warned of the outbreak of a new epidemic as winter approaches and vital health and infrastructure remain destroyed.

Bassam Zuqout, head of the medical relief department, stated that the severe deterioration of sanitary and environmental conditions, combined with the spread of insects and rodents in refugee tents, has raised serious concerns about the potential spread of a new epidemic. Zuqout emphasized that medical authorities have observed worrying signs of a possible outbreak of leptospirosis, a contagious disease transmitted through contact with the urine of rats and other rodents, which has significantly increased in the densely populated refugee camps.

He added that the risk of infection rises when rainwater and floodwater contaminated with rodent feces come into contact with the skin, especially if there are open wounds. Children are the most vulnerable, particularly those who play barefoot in contaminated water within the camps.

Warning over consequences of Israel’s hostile actions against aid agencies in Gaza

Following threats by the Israeli regime to revoke the operating licenses of dozens of humanitarian organizations in the Gaza Strip, international and Palestinian bodies have warned of a complete collapse of the humanitarian situation in the territory.

Volker Türk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, described Israel’s decision as “unjust” and warned that such actions would worsen the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza. He stressed that influential countries must exert pressure to ensure the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid to the Strip.

The European Union also warned that suspending the operations of humanitarian organizations in Gaza would prevent the delivery of vital assistance to the region. Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) similarly cautioned that Israel’s move could deprive thousands of Palestinian patients in Gaza of access to essential medical care.

Palestinian resistance movement: Israel turning humanitarian needs into a tool for extortion

The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, also issued a statement strongly condemning reports in Israeli media about the cabinet’s decision to revoke the operating licenses of dozens of international aid organizations in Gaza and the West Bank.

Hamas described the move as a dangerous act of provocation and a blatant disregard for the international community and the humanitarian aid system. The statement added that the occupying regime is attempting to politicize relief activities in Gaza and turn them into a tool for extorting the Palestinian people—a nation who are already facing the largest humanitarian catastrophe caused by Israeli crimes, particularly in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas called on the international community, especially the United Nations and all human rights and international organizations, to take swift and effective action to condemn this criminal policy and pressure the Israeli cabinet. The statement emphasized that the global community must not allow humanitarian aid to be used as a weapon of starvation or as a tool to prolong the suffering of the Palestinian people.