"Refugee Affairs" calls on UNRWA to retract its decision to terminate the contracts of employees in the health sector in Gaza.

The Department of Refugee Affairs in the Palestinian Liberation Organization, Palestinian Relief Works Agency called UNRWA to retract its decision that A contracts for 87 employees of health cadres working in the daily contract system in the Gaza Strip, among doctors and nurses who served for more than five years.

Member of the Executive Committee, Head of the Refugee Affairs Department, Ahmed Abu Holi, said that the decision carries catastrophic repercussions that strike the pillars of the health system inside the camps.

He warned that reducing the medical staff at this time would lead to an almost complete paralysis of the ability of the remaining eight clinics (out of 22 centres) to meet the needs of refugees, of whom more than 71% depend on the agency's services.

He added that terminating the contracts of medical talents, who have provided more than 15.9 million consultations since the beginning of the war, will create enormous pressure on the remaining crews. It provides about 16 thousand consultations day, and follows the conditions of 240 thousand children suffering from malnutrition, along with the care of tens of thousands of pregnant women.

He pointed out that this step will exacerbate overcrowding in health facilities and negatively affect the quality of care, in light of awide collapse in the health sector, after destroying more 70% of the medical infrastructure.

He also confirmed the rejection of the decision to close the evening period in two health centres out of eight remaining centers, considering that these measures represent an_abandoning of humanitarian legal responsibilities, especially in times of_conflicts.

He stressed that the PLO will not allow UNRWA's role to be undermined or empty of its cadres, calling on the agency's management to retract its decisions, and to engage in dialogue with the concerned authorities to ensure the continuation of services.

He called on the international community and donor countries to intervene urgently to provide the necessary funding, calling on the General Assembly of the United Nations to assume its responsibilities towards the Palestinian refugees and ensure the continuation of basic services.