1 big thing: Dogma-defying biology

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2. Part II: What's new

microscope image of proteins in nucleolus and not

3. Data from satellites is starting to spur climate action

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4. Worthy of your time

5. Something wondrous

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Thanks for reading Axios Science. This week's newsletter — about a basic key component of biology that wasn't in any of my textbooks — is 1,569 words, about a 6-minute read.

Send your feedback and ideas to me at alison@axios.com.

Big thanks to Laurin-Whitney for contributing to the newsletter, to Annelise Capossela on the Axios Visuals team for this week's illustration, and to Patricia Guadalupe for copy editing this edition.  

Science

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Young people at COP28 in Dubai are calling on the world to "do better" to ensure their countries — and the planet — are habitable for generations to come. 

The big picture: COP28 kicked off its second week with youth day, injecting energy in what will undoubtedly be the toughest days so far as negotiators work to hammer out some of the thorniest issues for the final text of the key Global Stocktake document. 

That includes whether it will include specific language on the "phase out," phase down," or some alternative, of fossil fuels.

From small — but loud — protests to panel discussions to sideline conversations, one outcome for many young people at COP is clear: Negotiators must come to an agreement on ending the use of fossil fuels to have a better chance of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees compared to preindustrial levels.

"We don't have enough time for discussions. We have to act now," said Grace Malie, a 24-year-old youth delegate from the Pacific island nation of Tuvalu. 

Driving the news: Those discussions in recent years have increasingly included young voices who bring creative ideas and give a full picture of what is happening on the ground, those who spoke to Axios said. 

"The actions [we want to see done] are being implemented by young people, not the leaders, not the men and women in suits," said 25-year-old Nyombi Morris, a climate and environmental activist from Uganda. 

It was a sentiment echoed by 26-year-old Tamala Pita from Tuvalu. But Pita, who is attending COP for the second time, said she also believes the climate summit gives young people the chance to keep the issues affecting their peers back home part of the conversations.

"Once you're out of the conversation, no one thinks about it. So that's why we are here," she said. 

Ahmed Abdi Osman, a 25-year-old representative of Somalia's Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, agreed. 

"As a youth leader, we are here to share our knowledge, to share our experience to share our insights from other youth leaders," Osman told Axios after engaging with other youth leaders on a panel about the role of young people in climate action. 

Osman, who is attending his first COP, said collaboration among leaders — especially young people — is key. Other youth leaders can share their own experiences, which can help Somalia see "how [it] can adapt" and "how [it] can mitigate climate change issues" back home," he said. 

Pacific island youth share traditional music and dance at the Climate Mobility Pavilion in the Blue Zone at COP28 on Dec. 8. Photo: Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath

Pacific Island youth share traditional music and dance at the Climate Mobility Pavilion in the Blue Zone at COP28 on Dec. 8. Photo: Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath/Axios

Zoom out: The young people Axios spoke to in Dubai expressed cautious optimism that this year's COP got off to a good start, with the adoption of a "loss and damage" fund to help some of the world's most vulnerable nations respond to the devastation caused by climate change. 

But they say it's not enough. "There needs to be better efforts being put in by countries who are emitting the most while we're at home feeling the most of the effects of climate change. People need to do better," Pita said. 

Zoom in: The effects of climate change are felt acutely in Tuvalu, the fourth-smallest nation in the world. Most — if not all — of the country could be submerged underwater by the end of the century under certain sea level rise scenarios. 

"When we're talking about loss and damage, the central thought of losing our land, it's not something where we can just get up, pack our things and go," Pita told Axios. 

"There's the historical, the traditional ties that we have to the land. Our culture is very much intertwined into the land," she added. 

Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees preindustrial levels is "not a goal for us, it's a limit. Because once we exceed that, our lands become uninhabitable ... And then, when we're forced to move, where can we go, where we can practice the same traditions and culture?" 

Go deeper: Indigenous peoples' climate dilemma: To go or not to go

Young people at COP28 call on world to "do better" to address climate change

"We don't have enough time for discussions. We have to act now."

Youth from Fridays for Future organization stage a protest calling to cease fires and end fossil fuels in the conference venue, Blue Zone during the COP28, UN Climate Change Conference

Youth from Fridays for Future organization stage a protest calling to cease fires and end fossil fuels in the conference venue, Blue Zone during the COP28, UN Climate Change Conference. 

Climate change

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Young people at <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="COP28 in Dubai" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/04/cop28-dubai-climate-pledges" data-vars-content-id="47e9b0f7-6f25-4aad-bf56-885b2eb6a4c5" data-vars-headline="Young people at COP28 call on world to &quot;do better&quot; to address climate change" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/04/cop28-dubai-climate-pledges" target="_self">COP28 in Dubai</a> are calling on the world to &quot;do better&quot; to ensure their countries — and the planet — are habitable for generations to come. The big picture: COP28 kicked off its second week with youth day, injecting energy in what will undoubtedly be the toughest days so far as negotiators work to hammer out some of the thorniest issues for the final text of the key <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Global Stocktake document" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/08/cop28-dubai-summit-crunch-time" data-vars-content-id="47e9b0f7-6f25-4aad-bf56-885b2eb6a4c5" data-vars-headline="Young people at COP28 call on world to &quot;do better&quot; to address climate change" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/08/cop28-dubai-summit-crunch-time" target="_self">Global Stocktake document</a>.

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Ominous forecasts about the impact of climate change serve as the backdrop for the world — led by U.S. lawmakers and companies — to debate big action on the problem, which could upend energy systems and our way of life.

Energy & Environment

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday reiterated his call for a humanitarian ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, saying such a truce is becoming "more urgent with every passing hour." 

The big picture: The number of Palestinians killed amid Israel's heavy bombardment and ground operation in the Strip surpassed 10,000 on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza. At least 4,104 children are among those killed. 

The death toll also includes 88 people who were working with the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) — the highest number of United Nations fatalities ever recorded in a single conflict, according to the UN.

What they're saying: 'The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis. It is a crisis of humanity," Guterres told reporters on Monday.

"Ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces and continued bombardment are hitting civilians, hospitals, refugee camps, mosques, churches and U.N. facilities — including shelters. No one is safe," he said. 

He demanded Hamas release the hostages they are holding in Gaza and called on Hamas and other militants to stop launching rockets "indiscriminately" toward Israel should stop. 

 He also said "Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children." 

"Hundreds of boys and girls are reportedly being killed or injured every day," he said.

"The unfolding catastrophe makes the need for a humanitarian ceasefire more urgent with every passing hour."

What's happening: Gaza continues to reel from a worsening humanitarian crisis. Overcrowded hospitals, which are experiencing shortages of medical supplies and medication, are struggling to cope with the number of people who are wounded or sick. 

Some hospitals have fully or partially shut down due to shortages of fuel, which has been needed to run backup generators since Israel cut electricity to Gaza early in the war. 

A limited number of trucks carrying aid have entered Gaza through the Strip's border with Egypt in recent weeks, but many Palestinians have said they're struggling to find clean drinking water, food and other basic goods. 

Satellite images taken on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza. Satellite image: Maxar Technologies via Getty Images

Zoom out: Guterres' comments came a day after the heads of several UN bodies and aid groups issued a joint call for a humanitarian ceasefire. 

"For almost a month, the world has been watching the unfolding situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory in shock and horror at the spiraling numbers of lives lost and torn apart," the joint statement read. 

The leaders called the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack, when 1,400 people in Israel were killed, tens of thousands of people were displaced, and more than 200 people, including children, were kidnapped and taken to Gaza, "horrific."

"However, the horrific killings of even more civilians in Gaza is an outrage, as is cutting off 2.2 million Palestinians from food, water, medicine, electricity and fuel," they added, referring to Israel's siege on the enclave. 

They called the siege of Gaza "unacceptable."

"An entire population is besieged and under attack, denied access to the essentials for survival, bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals and places of worship."

The statement was signed by the chiefs of the UN humanitarian aid office, World Health Organization, World Food Program, UN children's agency, International Organization for Migration, UN refugee agency and other UN bodies. It was also signed by the leaders of several aid groups, including CARE International, Mercy Corps and Save the Children. 

State of play: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far ruled out a humanitarian pause that doesn't include the release of hostages. 

The Biden administration has been pushing, saying it could allow for Palestinian civilians to move to safer areas and get aid to those most in need in Gaza, Axios Barak Ravid reports. 

But as more time goes on, the calls for a ceasefire continue to grow louder. Tens of thousands rallied at pro-Palestinian protests in large cities worldwide over the weekend, including in New York and Washington, D.C.

The bottom line: "We need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. It's been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now," the leaders of UN agencies and aid organizations said.

Go deeper: "Survival feels uncertain," Palestinians in Gaza say

UN chief says Gaza is "graveyard for children" as death toll climbs

'The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis. It is a crisis of humanity."

A Palestinian woman walks with her child among the rubble after Israeli attacks on Al-Maghazi refugee camp in Deir Al Balah, Gaza. Photo: Belal Khaled/Anadolu via Getty Images

Gaza

Axios Explains: Israel-Hamas war

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday reiterated his call for a humanitarian ceasefire in the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="war between Israel and Hamas" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/05/satellite-images-gaza-israel-strikes-hamas-jabalia" data-vars-content-id="81bd265a-5d4f-4294-80d5-f5310ffb7926" data-vars-headline="UN chief says Gaza is &quot;graveyard for children&quot; as death toll climbs" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/05/satellite-images-gaza-israel-strikes-hamas-jabalia" target="_self">war between Israel and Hamas</a> in Gaza, saying such a truce is becoming &quot;more urgent with every passing hour.&quot; The big picture: The number of Palestinians killed amid <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Israel&#x27;s heavy bombardment" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gaza-strip-israel-hamas-war-demographics" data-vars-content-id="81bd265a-5d4f-4294-80d5-f5310ffb7926" data-vars-headline="UN chief says Gaza is &quot;graveyard for children&quot; as death toll climbs" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gaza-strip-israel-hamas-war-demographics" target="_self">Israel&#x27;s heavy bombardment</a> and ground operation in the Strip surpassed 10,000 on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza. At least 4,104 children are among those killed.

Before and after satellite images help reveal the mass scale of Israel's intensifying bombardment of Gaza in the four weeks since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. 

The big picture: More than 9,400 Palestinians, including 3,900 children, have been killed in the Strip since the war began, according to the Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza. About 2,000 people have been reported missing — many of whom are believed to be under the rubble.

The bombardment has destroyed or damaged mosques, churches, bakeries, large parts of refugee camps, and other residential areas, according to satellite images, photos shared by journalists and statements from aid groups and authorities in Gaza. 

The Health Ministry in Ramallah reported last week that nearly half of all housing units in the besieged enclave, which is home to at least 2.2 million people, had been at least partially destroyed. 

A recent analysis of satellite data found at least one quarter of buildings in northern Gaza, where Israel has focused its ground operation, have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli strikes. 

Data: Damage analysis of Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite data by Corey Scher of CUNY Graduate Center and Jamon Van Den Hoek of Oregon State University. Map: Will Chase/Axios

What's happening: Israel claims it only targets Hamas militants and the group's infrastructure, but areas with large numbers of civilians, including the Jabalia refugee camp — Gaza's largest — have been hit. 

Jabalia has been targeted multiple times, including on Tuesday, when Israel said it destroyed parts of the Hamas' tunnel system and killed a senior Hamas commander — a claim the militant group denied. Israel claimed it killed another commander in Jabalia on Wednesday.

Dozens of civilians were also killed in the strikes on the camp, according to health authorities. Before and after satellite images of Jabalia show massive craters from the strikes.

"Given the high number of civilian casualties & the scale of destruction following Israeli airstrikes on Jabalia refugee camp, we have serious concerns that these are disproportionate attacks that could amount to war crimes," the UN human rights office said on Thursday.

Under international humanitarian law, attacks against legitimate military targets are prohibited if it is expected to cause civilian casualties or damage to civilian objects that would be "excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated." 

A screen grab from a video shows Palestinians searching for survivors following an Israeli airstrike in the Jabalia refugee. Photo: Fadi Wael Alwhidi/DPA/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

A screen grab from a video shows Palestinians searching for survivors following an Israeli airstrike in the Jabalia refugee on Oct. 31. Photo: Fadi Wael Alwhidi/DPA/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

Israel on Friday hit an ambulance convoy outside of Gaza City's Al-Shifa Hospital complex, killing at least 15 people, according to health officials in the enclave. 

Israel claimed the ambulance that was targeted was being used by Hamas militants, but the Palestine Red Crescent Society said the convoy was transporting wounded Palestinians to the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza. 

Satalite images taken on May 1 and Oct. 21  of the Beit Honoun, Gaza. 

Satellite images taken on May 1 and Oct. 21  of the Beit Honoun neighborhood of northern Gaza. Satellite image: Maxar Technologies via Getty Images

What they're saying: Israeli officials have called civilian casualties "the tragedy of war."

They also say their response, which includes an expanding ground operation in Gaza, is necessary to root out and destroy Hamas after its militants killed at least 1,400 people and kidnapped more than 230 people in the Oct. 7 terrorist attack in Israel. 

But Israel and its supporters, including the U.S., are under growing international pressure to do more to protect civilians and ease the worsening humanitarian crisis as the death toll in Gaza grows and images like those from Jabalia are shared. The Biden administration, which has thrown its full support behind Israel in the war, has increasingly called on the Israeli military to adhere to the rules of war.

Calls for a full ceasefire are also growing — something Israel and the U.S. have so far ruled out.

images like those from Jabalia are shared

Before and after satellite images show scale of destruction from Israeli strikes in Gaza

The bombardment has killed thousands and destroyed or damaged churches, bakeries and refugee camps.

Satellite images taken on Oct. 31 and Nov. 2 of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza.

Generate

Axios Generate

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Former Vice President Al Gore railed against COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber on Tuesday after a leaked video showed the UAE climate envoy telling former Republic of Ireland President Mary Robinson there's "no science" behind the push to phase out fossil fuels. 

What he's saying: "Do not ever try to mansplain to Mary Robinson — it doesn't work," Gore said at an Axios event on the sidelines of COP28 in Dubai.

Gore called Al-Jaber, who is also the CEO of state oil firm ADNOC, a "very nice ... and very smart" person, but criticized the UAE's decision to name him the leader of COP28.

"I just think [the decision is] disrespectful of the world public to undermine the trust that people ought to be able to have in the integrity of this process," he said.

Gore added that he finds it "abusive of public trust" that "the person in charge of organizing this entire exercise in a way that assists the global community in safeguarding humanity's future by reducing the spewing of all this heat-trapping gas into the sky would be the same person who is assiduously preparing one of the most aggressive expansions of more and more fossil fuel production."

The big picture: Al-Jaber has drawn criticism — including from Gore — since being named the leader of the COP28 talks. 

But that criticism was amplified earlier this week after The Guardian published a leaked video of al-Jaber making the comments to Robinson, a long-time climate activist, at the SHE Changes Climate online event. 

Joyce Kimutai, the principal meteorologist and climate scientist at the Kenya Meteorology Department, referred to the controversy and addressed political leaders' lack of action more generally during a separate interview at Tuesday's Axios event in Dubai. 

"I wish when they say they understood the science, they meant it," Kimutai told Axios. "To me, there's been more talk than action," she said. 

"[I]t's just time that we phase out fossil fuels," she added. "That is my honest opinion as a scientist. It may not be politically correct, but I don't think we need political correctness now because people are really, really suffering." 

Al-Jaber said at a press conference this week that he has "incredible respect for Mary Robinson and have a great deal of respect for everything she has been able to accomplish and achieve over the years."

"In fact, I was very honored to receive her invitation to participate and speak in a discussion around climate and gender," he added.

Zoom in: Speaking to Axios, Gore also provided more details on his call to reform the COP process.

He explained that the consensus-based approach gives outsized influence to major oil and gas-producing countries that favor a slower transition to renewables. He specifically pointed to Saudi Arabia, which has a long history of objecting to more aggressive COP decisions. 

What to watch: Gore said he plans to make a push for changes, which would involve altering the COP rules governing how these meetings are run.

"I'm hoping [at the end of COP28] there is enough outrage around the world at the obscene structure" of the conference's decision-making process "with the reported use of the preparatory meetings to sell more oil and gas," Gore said. 

He was referring to a BBC and Centre for Climate Reporting report, published last week, that alleged the UAE planned to discuss striking oil and gas deals with other governments at the climate summit. Al-Jaber has rejected the allegation as "false" and called it "an attempt to undermine" his work.

FEMA chief "very concerned" about disinformation from U.S. adversaries after disasters

Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk tells Axios the Biden administration takes industry feedback "incredibly seriously" 

Editor's note: This story has been updated with al-Jaber's comments. 

Gore rails against COP28 president: Don't "try to mansplain" climate activist Robinson

"It doesn't work," Gore said at an Axios event in Dubai.

Al Gore

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Former Vice President <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Al Gore" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/14/al-gore-fossil-fuel-companies-climate-change" data-vars-content-id="8bf8912f-4ba3-4804-9fbf-23b980203e2f" data-vars-headline="Gore rails against COP28 president: Don&#x27;t &quot;try to mansplain&quot; climate activist Robinson" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/14/al-gore-fossil-fuel-companies-climate-change" target="_self">Al Gore</a> railed against <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/04/cop28-al-jaber-fossil-fuel-phase-out-science" data-vars-content-id="8bf8912f-4ba3-4804-9fbf-23b980203e2f" data-vars-headline="Gore rails against COP28 president: Don&#x27;t &quot;try to mansplain&quot; climate activist Robinson" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/04/cop28-al-jaber-fossil-fuel-phase-out-science" target="_self">COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber</a> on Tuesday after a leaked video showed the UAE climate envoy telling former Republic of Ireland President Mary Robinson there&#x27;s &quot;no science&quot; behind the push to phase out fossil fuels. What he&#x27;s saying: &quot;Do not ever try to mansplain to Mary Robinson — it doesn&#x27;t work,&quot; Gore said at an Axios event on the sidelines of COP28 in Dubai.

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

The UN's humanitarian operations in Gaza will "grind to a halt" in 48 hours without fuel supplies, as lives in the enclave "hang by a thread," UN officials warned on Monday.  

The big picture: The warnings come as health officials at several Gaza hospitals reported in recent days that they have been forced to shut down their operations due to nearby fighting and a lack of fuel and other supplies. 

That includes al-Shifa hospital, the enclave's largest, where hundreds of patients, health workers and displaced Palestinians remain, according to the Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza. 

Hospitals across Gaza have relied on fuel to run generators since Israel imposed a "complete siege" on the enclave and cut electricity early in the war. That fuel has now run out, health officials, the UN and other aid groups say.

What they're saying: "Lives in Gaza are hanging by a thread due to depleting fuel and medical supplies. We hear that patients are already dying," Andrea De Domenico, the head of the UN humanitarian office (OCHA) in the occupied Palestinian territory, told reporters Monday. 

De Domenico said that in general, the UN's operational conditions are "deteriorating by the hour."

"We have no fuel, no [communications], and no guarantee of respecting UN premises ..., which is reducing progressively our ability to operate," he added. 

What's happening: Fighting between Israeli ground forces and Hamas militants continues to intensify in northern Gaza, particularly around al-Shifa hospital. 

Israel has focused on the hospital because it claims Hamas houses its headquarters and tunnels under the facility — a claim the militant group denies. 

More than 30 patients, including three newborn babies, have died at al-Shifa in recent days due to the heavy fighting or lack of power, per Reuters, citing the Gaza Ministry of Health. Dozens of other premature babies at the hospital were relocated "to an operating room without their incubators, with health workers trying to heat the room," the UN said on Monday. 

"We don't have electricity. There's no water in the hospital. There's no food. People will die in a few hours without functioning ventilators," a surgeon with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) who works in Al-Shifa hospital told the organization on Monday. "The situation is very bad, it is inhuman."

A view of 33 premature babies whose lives are in danger at intensive care unit as the Israeli attacks continue on its 36th day in Gaza City, Gaza on November 11, 2023. 

Several premature babies were placed together in al-Shifa hospital after incubators became unfunctional. Photo: Al-Shifa Hospital / Handout /Anadolu via Getty Images 

The Israeli military claimed on Sunday it had attempted to deliver 300 liters (79.25 gallons) of fuel to power generators al-Shifa and that Hamas rejected the offer — a claim the militant group denied. 

Hamas also said that amount would only be enough to power generators for 30 minutes, per Reuters. 

Health officials have also reported damage from Israeli attacks to part of al-Shifa and other hospitals in recent days.

Zoom in: Fuel shortages across Gaza are also impacting sanitation and water supplies, according to the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), which reported that two of its water distribution contractors stopped work.

"A tough decision – fuel for a hospital or fuel to produce drinking water – both save lives. Unfortunately, this is not a hypothetical," UNRWA's Thomas White wrote on X.

"No fuel means no pumping of sewage or waste removal. [T]his is a serious threat to public health. [D]isease outbreak will become a reality," he added.

An injured man in the Indonesia hospital of northern Gaza.

An injured man lies in Indonesian Hospital after a blackout at the hospital. Photo: Fadi Alwhidi/Anadolu via Getty Images

Zoom out: More than 11,100 Palestinians, including at least 4,600 children, in Gaza have been killed since the war began in early October following Hamas' attack on Israel, according to the Ministry of Health. 

The death toll includes at least 101 UN workers — the highest number of deaths for UN staff in any single conflict. UN agencies on Monday held a moment of silence and lowered flags to half-staff to remember those killed. 

"They will never be forgotten," UN Secretary-General António Guterres said. 

What to watch: OCHA's De Domenico said that beginning on Tuesday, the UN will be unable to unload any aid trucks that are allowed into Gaza because they "don't have the fuel for the forklift and we do not have the fuel for the trucks that are distributing that assistance out to where the people in need are." 

"We are running out of time before a major disaster," De Domenico warned. 

Go deeper:  "Survival feels uncertain," Palestinian in Gaza say

Lives in Gaza "hang by thread" as hospital and humanitarian systems collapse

The UN's humanitarian operations in Gaza will "grind to a halt" in 48 hours without fuel supplies, UN officials warned on Monday.

A screen grab captured from a video shows doctors using phone flashlights to examine people injured in Israeli attacks at the Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza. Photo: Ahmed Alarini/Anadolu via Getty Images

The UN&#x27;s humanitarian operations in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Gaza" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gaza-strip-israel-hamas-war-demographics" data-vars-content-id="efcf0db8-f9cf-4e43-80c7-c5733d16d48a" data-vars-headline="Lives in Gaza &quot;hang by thread&quot; as hospital and humanitarian systems collapse" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/21/gaza-strip-israel-hamas-war-demographics" target="_self">Gaza</a> will &quot;grind to a halt&quot; in 48 hours without fuel supplies, as lives in the enclave &quot;hang by a thread,&quot; UN officials warned on Monday. The big picture: The warnings come as health officials at <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="several Gaza hospitals" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/29/gaza-death-toll-israel-war-guterres-un-humanitarian" data-vars-content-id="efcf0db8-f9cf-4e43-80c7-c5733d16d48a" data-vars-headline="Lives in Gaza &quot;hang by thread&quot; as hospital and humanitarian systems collapse" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/29/gaza-death-toll-israel-war-guterres-un-humanitarian" target="_self">several Gaza hospitals</a> reported in recent days that they have been forced to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="shut down their operations" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/DrTedros/status/1723795481401217509" data-vars-content-id="efcf0db8-f9cf-4e43-80c7-c5733d16d48a" data-vars-headline="Lives in Gaza &quot;hang by thread&quot; as hospital and humanitarian systems collapse" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/DrTedros/status/1723795481401217509" target="_blank">shut down their operations</a> due to nearby fighting and a lack of fuel and other supplies.

Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath

Stories

Young people at COP28 call on world to "do better" to address climate change

Gore rails against COP28 president: Don't "try to mansplain" climate activist Robinson

Lives in Gaza "hang by thread" as hospital and humanitarian systems collapse

UN chief says Gaza is "graveyard for children" as death toll climbs

Before and after satellite images show scale of destruction from Israeli strikes in Gaza

Newsletter editions

Axios Science: Dogma-defying biology