GAZA, May 17, 2004, (WAFA)- United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) called for ending the Israeli destroying of Palestinian houses in the refugee Camp of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.... In a press release issued Sunday in Gaza, UNRWA called on the Israeli military to halt its demolition operations in Rafah in the Gaza Strip where 12,600 people are now homeless.... UNRWA turned a school into shelter to host the latest Palestinian victims who lost their houses during the latest wave of house demolitions. It also distributed tents, food, water, kitchen kits, mattresses and blankets, according to the press release.... "The Agency estimates that it will now cost $32 million to re-house the 18,382 people who have lost their homes across the Gaza Strip," said the press release.... “In recent days the intensity of demolitions has seen a dramatic increase in the numbers of lost buildings in Gaza. Now UNRWA has the job of dealing with the human tragedy behind each demolition – the distressed children in its schools, the homeless families in need of basics…," said Peter Hansen, UNRWA’s Commissioner-General.... He added, “We are extremely alarmed that even more demolitions are planned. Already huge swathes of Rafah have been flattened, to the extent that some families have experienced the trauma of demolition more than once. With these disproportionate military operations, Israel is in grave breach of international humanitarian law. This collective punishment can do nothing to calm the situation in Gaza or enhance Israel’s own security.”
According to UNRWA, so far in May, 2,197 Palestinians have been made homeless following the demolition of 191 homes throughout the Strip. "The worst affected area is Rafah, where 1,064 newly homeless people were added in two days to the more than 11,000 who had already lost their homes since the start of the intifada," the press release added.... UNRWA has been facing severe under funding of its Emergency Appeal for the occupied Palestinian territory in 2004 and is unlikely to receive all the resources it needs to meet the needs of the homeless. Already many thousands of people have waited more than two years for the Agency to provide them with new, permanent shelter.