A three-month-old baby girl in Gaza City tragically froze to death on Tuesday, marking the ninth cold-related fatality of the season, according to UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq. In response, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) called for urgent measures, including the entry of batteries, solar panels, and other energy sources to establish communal heating spaces.
Humanitarian agencies continue to provide essential support in Gaza despite ongoing restrictions. Since the beginning of the year, over 860,000 people have received food packages across 50 distribution points, and approximately 1.6 million hot meals are provided daily to those in need. Health partners have begun a 10-day vaccination campaign targeting children under three to protect against preventable diseases. The World Health Organization also facilitated a medical evacuation to Jordan for 21 patients and their companions, but more than 18,000 patients, including 4,000 children, still await transfer for care unavailable in Gaza. WHO urged more UN Member States to accept these patients and for the reopening of evacuation routes to the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
In the West Bank, December saw 14 Palestinians killed and 231 injured, with Israeli settlers conducting 132 attacks resulting in casualties or property damage, displacing 246 Palestinians. Overall, 2025 recorded a record-high level of displacement and settler attacks. Throughout the year, 240 Palestinians, including 55 children, were killed—mostly by Israeli forces—with live ammunition and airstrikes causing the majority of fatalities. Nearly 4,000 Palestinians were injured, and over 37,000 displaced. Israeli casualties numbered 17 deaths and 101 injuries, including children and security forces.
The UN human rights office, OHCHR, reported accelerating forced displacement in East Jerusalem, warning that historic neighborhoods are being “systematically emptied.” Demolitions and evictions in areas such as Silwan, along with illegal settlement expansion in East Jerusalem, Ramallah, and Bethlehem, have further reduced Palestinian presence. Many evicted homes are taken over by Israeli settlers or authorities for new settlement projects, including a proposed tourist park with a cable car linking West Jerusalem to the Old City. A 2024 International Court of Justice ruling condemned these actions as contrary to the Fourth Geneva Convention, calling on Israel to end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
