Geneva - The UN on Friday launched an emergency aid appeal seeking $1.2 billion to help some 2.7 million people in Gaza and the West Bank.
"The cost of meeting the needs of 2.7 million people - that is the entire population of Gaza and 500,000 people in the occupied West Bank - is estimated to be $1.2 billion," the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.
OCHA had initially appealed for $294 million to support nearly 1.3 million people. "The situation has grown increasingly desperate since then," it said.
Israeli ground troops encircled Gaza City on Friday in their war against Hamas, as top US diplomat Antony Blinken arrived in Israel for a trip focused on "concrete steps" to minimise Palestinian civilian casualties.
Ahead of Blinken's arrival, Israel's military said on Thursday it had "completed the encirclement" of the narrow Palestinian territory's largest city -- signalling a new phase in the nearly month-long conflict.
The Gaza health ministry says more than 9,000 people have died in Israeli bombardments, mostly women and children.
Fresh Israeli strikes rocked the Gaza Strip on Friday morning, an AFP correspondent said, and the Gaza health ministry reported at least 15 deaths in Gaza City's Zeitun neighbourhood and seven in Jabalia refugee camp.
Before his departure, Blinken said he would seek to ensure that harm to Palestinian civilians is reduced, in a visible shift of tone for the United States which has promised full support and ramped-up military aid to Israel.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
