The United Nations warned on Saturday that the situation in the Gaza Strip is deteriorating and alarming, and blamed Israel for a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

A statement released by the UN spokesman's office and which lists the latest assessment of the UN Humanitarian Agencies working in the occupied Palestinian territory noted that the developments on the ground will wreak far-reaching harm on Palestinian society.

The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which works with 980,000 refugees, believed that the Gaza Strip is on the brink of a public health disaster.

"Since the strike on Gaza's only power plant on June 28, the entire strip is without electricity for between 12 and 18 hours every day," it said in one of the six sections of the the statement.

It pointed out that the Coastal Municipality Water Utility is now relying on its own backup generators to operate its 130 water wells and 33 sewage pumping plants.

"As it only has 5,000 liters of the 18,000 liters of fuel needed, the Water Utility's daily operation has been cut by two thirds, resulting in water shortages and a critical situation at the sewage plants," it said.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the public health system in the Gaza Strip is facing an unprecedented crisis.

WHO estimated that the current stock of fuel will last for a maximum of two weeks, and those generators which are being used by hospitals were intended for backup purposes and the malfunctioning of these generators will have grave consequences.

The World Food Programme (WFP) estimated that in June, 70 percent of the Gaza population were already unable to cover their daily food needs without assistance, while the escalation of hostilities has made food an increasingly critical issue.

It said it is essential that a humanitarian corridor for relief items and personnel remain open to avert a further deterioration in the food security situation.

According to the UN Children's Fund, children in the Gaza Strip are living in an environment of extraordinary violence, insecurity and fear.

Electricity and fuel shortages are leading to a reduction in the quantity and quality of health care and water accessible to children, the statement noted.

It also said the ongoing fighting is hurting children psychologically, and many children are showing signs of distress and exhaustion.

The use of force by Israel during its military operations into the Gaza Strip has resulted in an increasing number of deaths and other casualties among the Palestinian civilian population, and significant damage to civilian property and infrastructure, said the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

While Israel has security concerns, international humanitarian law requires that the principles of proportionality and distinction between civilians and combatants be respected at all times, it stressed, adding the deterioration in the current human rights situation requires that measures should be promptly taken to put an end to these actions.

The Office of the Co-Ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) called for the continuous and unimpeded access for humanitarian assistance and fuel supplies.

OCHA feared that the humanitarian situation could easily deteriorate, with continued Israeli military operations and artillery shelling, which could damage the remaining infrastructure and essential services.

The UN humanitarian agencies believed that the facts on the ground speak for themselves and carry their own imperatives to all parties.

"Unless urgent action is taken, we are facing a humanitarian crisis that will have far reaching consequences for the communities we work in and the institutions we work through," the statement concluded.

Source: Xinhua