Ramallah – SABA:
The United Nations Office for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory expressed deep shock and outrage on Sunday over the continued killings of emergency and humanitarian aid workers in Gaza as a result of the ongoing Israeli military offensive.
In a post on its official X (formerly Twitter) account, the UN office reported that the Israeli army targeted a facility belonging to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) earlier today, killing one staff member and injuring three others.
The statement noted that, to date, 49 PRCS personnel and 136 civil defense workers have been killed in Gaza while performing their humanitarian duties under extremely dangerous conditions.
“These individuals continue their life-saving work fully aware that they are risking their lives,” the UN office stated, emphasizing the urgent need for thorough and independent investigations into all incidents involving attacks on civilians, particularly humanitarian and emergency personnel.
The office warned that the deliberate targeting of aid workers may constitute a war crime under international humanitarian law, and called for the accountability of those responsible for these grave violations.
Since October 7, 2023, and with U.S. and European support, the Israeli military has waged what is increasingly being recognized as a campaign of genocide in Gaza. The attacks have so far killed 60,839 Palestinian civilians, most of them women and children, and injured 149,588 others, according to non-final tallies. Thousands of victims remain trapped under rubble or in inaccessible areas, unreachable by rescue and ambulance teams.
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