United Nations, Jan 18 : UN humanitarians said that they and partners are mobilising supplies for a widening pipeline of aid and commercial goods into Gaza with the implementation of a long-sought, impending ceasefire.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that humanitarians are also exploring ways to expand the delivery of cash to those in need so that they do not have to depend entirely on aid and can take advantage of commercial goods when available. Relief organisations aim to reach hundreds of thousands of people with basic shelters, provided they can access the supplies needed, Xinhua news agency reported.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported a mission reached the fuel-strapped Al-Awda Hospital in North Gaza governorate on Wednesday. The team delivered 5,000 liters of fuel, food parcels, bottled water, winter clothes and vaccines. Two patients in critical condition and their companions were prepared to move to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

WHO said 33 patients and about 30 of their companions remain in Al-Awda Hospital, with a dozen doctors, two dozen nurses and 16 administrative staff. Access to the hospital remains extremely challenging and risky for patients.

The health agency said that during the mission, "a bullet struck an ambulance belonging to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Thankfully, no injuries were reported. However, the incident underscores the importance of the ceasefire in ensuring the ability to safely access civilians."

Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), briefed the Security Council in a closed session, but later met reporters. He called for full implementation of the cessation of hostilities scheduled for Sunday.

UNRWA is facing significant challenges with the deaths of more than 200 of its workers in the 15 months of the Gaza conflict and Israel's threat to close it down at month's end with the allegation that the agency is infiltrated with members of Hamas.

"We need rapid, unhindered and uninterrupted humanitarian access to respond to the tremendous suffering in Gaza," he said. "We are ready to support the recovery of Gaza by resuming education and continuing to provide primary healthcare."

Lazzarini said full implementation of the Israeli legislation to throttle UNRWA "will be catastrophic," massively weakening the humanitarian response and worsening living conditions.

He disputes the Israeli government's claim that UNRWA's services can be transferred to other entities.

"UNRWA's ability to directly provide education and primary healthcare far exceeds that of any other entity," the director said. "These services can only be transferred to a functioning state. UNRWA's personnel and services are also tightly woven into the social fabric of Gaza. The disintegration of the agency will intensify the breakdown of social order."

He also said that dismantling the 30,000 member UNRWA outside a political process will undermine the ceasefire agreement and sabotage Gaza's recovery and political transition.

"A chaotic dismantling of UNRWA will irreversibly harm the lives and future of Palestinians," Lazzarini said. "It will obliterate their trust in the international community and any solution it attempts to facilitate."

He said a ceasefire in Gaza must be followed by a political transition that includes an orderly conclusion of UNRWA's General Assembly mandate and the handover of its public-like services to empowered Palestinian institutions.

/IANS