Palestinians in Gaza voice hopes of a better year in 2026 following a conflict-filled 2025

Displaced Palestinians in Gaza City began 2026 on Thursday, January 1, living in makeshift shelters that offered little protection from the rain. Residents of the camp expressed hope that the coming year will be better than 2025, which was marked by conflict and hardship.

Earlier this week, Britain, Canada, France, and several other countries issued a joint statement on Tuesday, December 30, highlighting the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza. The statement called on Israel to take urgent action to address the crisis.

Published online by the British Foreign Office, the statement urged Israel to allow non-governmental organizations to operate in Gaza in a sustained and predictable manner and to ensure the United Nations could continue its work in the Palestinian territory.

It also called for the lifting of what it described as "unreasonable restrictions" on imports such as medical supplies and shelter equipment, and for border crossings to be opened to increase the flow of humanitarian aid.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in October, ending two years of intense Israeli military operations in Gaza that followed a deadly attack by Hamas-led fighters on Israeli communities in October 2023.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry responded to the joint statement, calling it "false but unsurprising" and describing it as "part of a recurring pattern of detached criticism and one-sided demands on Israel, while deliberately ignoring the essential requirement of disarming Hamas."

A global hunger monitor reported on December 19 that famine was no longer present in Gaza, thanks to improved access for humanitarian and commercial food deliveries following the ceasefire.

However, humanitarian agencies say much more aid is needed in the small, densely populated territory, and that Israel continues to block essential items. Israel maintains that sufficient food is entering Gaza and that the main issues lie with distribution within the enclave.

On Wednesday, December 31, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Israel’s decision to cut electricity and water to facilities run by the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency, according to a U.N. spokesperson. The spokesperson said the move would "further impede" the agency’s operations.

In 2024, Israel’s parliament passed a law banning the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency from operating in the country and prohibiting Israeli officials from contacting the agency.

-Production: Mussab Al-Khairalla/Reuters