Sharjah24 – AFP: A UN official in war-battered Gaza Sunday called for a "genuine political process" to avert further bloodshed, after the military conflict between Israel and Hamas that ravaged the Palestinian enclave.
As thousands of Gazans slowly tried to piece back together their lives, top UN staff visited the territory after an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire Friday halted 11 days of mutual bombardment, where they warned of the deep psychological trauma of the violence.
On Sunday, in a badly-damaged district of Gaza city, volunteers swept up clouds of dust at the feet of collapsed buildings, while others shovelled debris onto the back of a donkey-drawn cart.
Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip since May 10 have killed more than 200 Palestinians, rendered thousands homeless and laid waste to buildings and key infrastructure across the blockaded territory.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, said the reconstruction needed to go hand in hand with efforts to create "a different political environment".
"We need to have a genuine focus on human development," on proper access to education, jobs and livelihoods, he said.
"But this needs to be accompanied by a genuine political process".
Speaking earlier to a group of journalists, he said "the layers of hardship in Gaza keep getting thicker", because the root causes of the conflict have not been addressed.
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