Israel-Palestinian Strife Exacts Grim Toll in Gaza

GENEVA - U.N. agencies said conditions in Gaza continue to deteriorate nine days into the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. In Gaza, 200 people reportedly have been killed and more than 6,000 injured. Twenty people have been killed in the West Bank, and Palestinian rocket attacks into populated areas of Israel reportedly have killed 10 people and injured 800.

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said it welcomes the decision by Israeli authorities to open the Kerem Shalom border crossing, allowing essential humanitarian supplies to enter Gaza. It urges Israel also to open the Erez Crossing, so critical humanitarian staff can move in and out of Palestinian territory. OCHA said days of intense fighting and the destruction and damage to hundreds of buildings and houses has displaced nearly 47,000 people in Gaza. They reportedly have sought refuge in 58 schools run by UNRWA, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency. OCHA spokesman Jens Laerke said the North Gaza Seawater Desalination Plant is still not operational, depriving a quarter million people access to drinking water.