A United Nations official has been killed together with greater than 70 members of his prolonged household in an Israeli air strike close to Gaza Metropolis, as a whole bunch of individuals have been killed in intensified bombardment since Friday’s UN Safety Council decision that has been criticised as “woefully insufficient”.
Issam Al Mughrabi, 56, who labored for the United Nations Growth Programme (UNDP) for 3 many years was killed alongside together with his spouse and kids in an Israeli air strike on Friday.
“For almost 30 years, Issam has worked with UNDP through our Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People,” UNDP administrator Achim Steiner stated in an announcement.
“The loss of Issam and his family has deeply affected us all. The UN and civilians in Gaza are not a target.”
Providing his condolences to Issam’s household and colleagues the World Well being Group’s chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confused in a publish on X that “humanitarians should never be victims” and known as for a ceasefire.
So saddened by this tragedy @ASteiner. My deepest condolences to all who knew and cherished Issam and his household, you and everybody at @UNDP.
Humanitarians ought to by no means be victims. We want a #CeasefireNOW in #Gaza.https://t.co/E2r6BCQSBl https://t.co/C7NuyHSLcG
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 23, 2023
Since Israel’s warfare on Gaza started on October 7, 136 employees members of the UN have been killed.
On Friday, the worldwide company’s secretary-general Antonio Guterres stated that all through the UN’s historical past, they’d by no means witnessed the dying of their employees in such giant numbers.
“Most of our staff have been forced from their homes,” he added in a publish on X, paying tribute to UN members working in Gaza.
Tough weekend for Gaza and the Israeli military
The dying of the veteran UN employees member and his members of the family comes as Israeli air strikes proceed to kill a whole bunch of Palestinians within the Gaza Strip.
On Saturday, Gaza’s Ministry of Well being stated that at the very least 201 Palestinians had been killed and practically 370 wounded by Israeli forces previously 24 hours in Gaza.
Within the early hours of Sunday, a 13-year-old baby was additionally killed by an Israeli drone close to El Amal Hospital in Khan Younis, in accordance with the Palestine Crimson Crescent Society.
Greater than 8,000 youngsters have been killed in Gaza because the Israel-Hamas warfare started on October 7.
Reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud stated that Saturday in a single day, extra residential areas in Deir el-Balah metropolis, the place folks from locations such because the Bureij and Nuseirat refugee camps had been ordered to evacuate, got here below heavy bombardment, and houses had been destroyed. He stated the jap aspect of the Gaza Strip was additionally experiencing fierce airstrikes.
“As of now, the search for people under the rubble is ongoing,” Hani stated.
In the meantime, Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher highlighted the way it has additionally been a tough weekend for the Israeli military in Gaza, with 5 troopers killed on Friday and eight on Saturday, resulting from fierce preventing within the Strip.
“You’ve heard from the Israelis suggesting that in northern Gaza, they had military control. The fact that they are still losing soldiers, that rockets are still being fired from Gaza towards Israel, would suggest that they don’t have that control and that means that this phase of the war is likely to go on for longer,” Fisher stated, reporting from Ramallah, within the occupied West Financial institution.
Problem in delivering support
On Friday, the UN handed a decision after days of delays that watered down the language. It known as for support supply however couldn’t agree on a ceasefire. Help teams say the relentless bombardment and the fierce preventing between the Israeli military and Hamas have impeded support supply within the besieged enclave the place individuals are dealing with starvation.
“The real problem is that the way Israel is conducting this offensive is creating massive obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian aid inside Gaza,” UN chief Guterres stated.
“An effective aid operation in Gaza requires security, staff who can work in safety, logistical capacity, and the resumption of commercial activity. These four elements do not exist,” he added.
UNRWA director Thomas White shared comparable issues and highlighted that circumstances on the bottom for support employees ought to be safe, for support deliveries to be carried out.
“We need a ceasefire that will stop the killing of civilians and destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza,” he stated.