New York, January 08 (QNA) - The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Wednesday that fuel shortages and road closures are significantly slowing the humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip.

"While fuel deliveries have resumed, ongoing access restrictions, congestion, and storage gaps continue to drive up costs and delay assistance", OCHA said in a statement. It noted that UN partners were able to resume the distribution of monthly food rations for the first time since October 2023, reaching 100,000 people.

Since the ceasefire, 35 health service points were reactivated, while 25 new ones were established, including 12 primary healthcare centers, most of which are located in northern Gaza, OCHA added.

It also noted the expansion of Temporary Learning Spaces (TLSs) to 424 sites, including two TLSs that were opened between Jan. 3 and 4.

The Israeli occupation continues its war of genocide in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, leaving thousands of martyrs, wounded, and missing persons, in addition to hundreds of thousands of displaced people.

Living conditions have severely deteriorated, with famine causing the deaths of many citizens, and widespread destruction that has destroyed most cities of the Strip, amid the occupation's restrictions on the entry of food and medical supplies. (QNA)