JERUSALEM - More than 40 UN and other humanitarian agencies urged Israel on Wednesday to lift its crippling blockade of Hamas-run Gaza, where a majority of the population is kept alive through foreign aid.

"We call for free and uninhibited access for all humanitarian assistance ... We also call for a return to normalised trade," said a joint statement read at a news conference in a UN warehouse in Jerusalem where aid destined for the impoverished Palestinian enclave is stored.

The statement was issued to mark the second anniversary of the blockade under which Israel and Egypt have kept Gaza after the violent takeover by Hamas, an Islamist movement pledged to the destruction of the Jewish state.

"The indiscriminate sanctions are affecting the entire 1.5 million population of Gaza, and ordinary women, children and the elderly are the first victims," it said.

"While Gazans are being kept alive through humanitarian aid, ordinary civilians have lost all quality of life as they fight to survive."

The situation was compounded by devastation wrought by the 22-day military offensive Israel launched against the Gaza Strip in December, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians. Thirteen Israelis were killed during the fighting Israel said aimed at ending rocket fire from Gaza.

Because of the blockade, humanitarian agencies have been unable to bring in the materials needed to rebuild homes, schools and hospitals.

"Thousands of people are living with holes in their walls, broken windows and no running water," the statement said.

To highlight the effects of the blockade, Oxfam spokesman Michael Bailey held up a can of Gaza-made hummus that cannot be exported because of the blockade.

"This is collective punishment in a tin," he said.

The company that makes the chickpea paste had to close down last year and lay off its 85 employees because it could not import empty cans from Israel, said Bailey.

Among the signatories were the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA, Oxfam International and CARE, as well as several dozen smaller organisations.