The chief of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, or UNRWA, has inspected humanitarian relief efforts at the Rafah border crossing in the south of the Gaza Strip.

Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini spoke to NHK during his visit on Sunday to Rafah, which borders Egypt.

Lazzarini said UN-run evacuation facilities are "completely overcrowded," with more than 1.4 million people currently sheltering there. He said the sanitary and living conditions are appalling.

He noted that evacuees are struggling on a day-to-day basis to secure food and clean water, and those places are at risk of starvation and disease outbreaks.

The commissioner said a variety of daily necessities, such as clothing, should be allowed into Gaza as winter arrives. He said people left everything behind when they fled their houses in October, and that many are still wearing the same clothes.

He added that intense fighting continues, especially in the central region of Gaza, despite his side having called for a humanitarian ceasefire for two months. He said a cessation of fighting is crucial to save people's lives.