The head of UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, has warned the death toll among the agency’s staff since the onset of the Gaza war amounts to the largest in the world body’s history.
Nearly 200 UNRWA workers have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel’s ongoing offensive on Oct. 7, 2023, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said on Saturday.
“When the war in Gaza started nearly 10 months ago, no one thought we will reach this grim milestone. Nearly 200 UNRWA team members have been killed in Gaza,” Philippe Lazzariniwrote on X.
“These are not numbers, these are our colleagues and our friends,” added Lazzarini, noting that “this is by far the largest loss of personnel killed in a single conflict or natural disaster since the creation of the United Nations – a reality the world must never accept.”
Lazzarini reiterated “the call of the UN Secretary General for a full accountability for each and every one of these deaths”.
Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.
More than 39,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children. Vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.
An aide to the Iranian president has criticized the filtering of some social media in…
Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif has said resistance in Lebanon and…
United Nations peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have reported another Israeli attack on their positions as…
The heads of some EU member states have tried to persuade US President-elect Donald Trump…
The administration of President Joe Biden allowed US defense contractors to work in Ukraine to…
An Iranian newspaper has criticized some officials suggesting that it would have made no difference…