New York  - The United Nations said Friday Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have gone from an "overwhelming grief to a pervasive sense of anger" as they continue to face the reality of the destruction of their community and shortage of daily essentials.

"People here are coming to term with a new reality, with tens of thousands of them have no homes anymore and also the aid efforts are hampered by the lack of access," said John Ging, the head of the UN relief agency for Palestinians in Gaza.

"It's very frustrating for all people here," he said two weeks after a ceasefire was declared in the fighting between Hamas and Israel.

Ging said only about 100 trucks carrying supplies have entered Gaza in the past two weeks, compared with the more than 130 trucks that reached the territory daily before fighting broke out on December 27 with Israeli airstrikes against Hamas targets in Gaza. The 100 trucks that carried food and other humanitarian items crossed the Karem border point, which was the only opened crossing allowed by Israel.

He said the UN has had to increase food distribution to 900,000 Palestinians, 200,000 more than before December 27. Those receiving food aid include employees of the Palestinian Authority (PA), who have not been paid their salaries for many months. Gaza is under the control of Hamas, which ousted PA to the West Bank.

Ging said the UN has been assisting tens of thousands of homeless Palestinians who have lost their homes to the fighting. The UN said an estimated 6,600 Palestinians have been killed and injured since December 27, one third of the casualties are children and women.

The UN this week appealed for 613 million dollars to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza. (dpa)