Israeli airstrike targets UNRWA aid center near Gaza City

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At least five Palestinians were killed and seven others injured on Sunday when Israel carried out a bomb attack on the eastern main gate of the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) southwest of Gaza city, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The injured, including children and women, were taken to the city’s Baptist Hospital, it was said.

A witness told Reuters that the attack hit part of a vocational training centre used by UNRWA to distribute aid to displaced families, killing eight people.

“Some people came to get vouchers, others had been displaced from their homes and were seeking shelter here. Some were filling up water, others were given vouchers, and suddenly we heard something falling. We ran away, those carrying water let it spill,” said Mohammed Tafesh, one of the witnesses.

Since October 7, 37,598 people have been killed and 86,032 injured in Israel’s attacks and ground offensives in the Gaza Strip, according to health authorities. The Gaza Strip’s Health Ministry said on Sunday that at least 47 people had died in the past 24 hours.

Israel launched its offensive in the Gaza Strip following Hamas’ attack on southern Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and returned about 240 to the enclave as hostages.

Palestinian health officials said on Saturday that at least 40 Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes in some northern districts of the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army said it had attacked Hamas’ military infrastructure there. Hamas said the targets were civilians.

The Israeli military continues to shell the Gaza Strip as its troops advance deeper into the southern city of Rafah amid heavy fighting with Hamas.

Israeli tanks advanced to the edge of a refugee camp in the Mawasi region northwest of Rafah on Sunday, residents told Reuters.

Images of two Israeli tanks stationed on a hilltop overlooking the coastal region went viral on social media.

“The fighting with the resistance was fierce. The occupying forces now control the Mawasi area, forcing families there to move to Khan Younis,” a resident who wished to remain anonymous said on a chat app.

When the Israeli military began its offensive on the city in early May, it declared Mawasi a safe zone for the residents of Rafah. However, the area has been hit several times. At least 22 people were killed in an artillery attack on Friday near a Red Cross compound.

A senior Red Cross official in Gaza described the horrific scenes after the attack, about which the Israeli military said it had no information.

Three explosions shook the walls of the complex at around 3:30 p.m., William Schomburg, the local head of the ICRC, told reporters in Geneva on Saturday via video link.

Then a “flood of injured people” came seeking help, he said.

“There were pools of blood on the streets around the site and bodies scattered on the ground,” he said.

“Honestly, I’ve never seen anything like it before. The level of suffering in such a short period of time was really shocking for the team.”

The complex in which the Red Cross operates is located directly south of a humanitarian zone designated by the Israeli army.

“All of our buildings are very well known to all parties to the conflict,” said Mr Schomburg.

He declined to speculate on the source of the shelling, saying: “We are not here to assign blame.”

According to Schomburg, no Red Cross employees were killed, but two children of employees had to be treated for injuries sustained in the explosions.

The scale of death and destruction in Gaza has drawn international condemnation and puts pressure on Mr Netanyahu, who insists the fighting will not stop until Hamas is destroyed and hostages held by the terror group are released.

His stance has put him under pressure from the Israelis, who are demanding that his government agree to a ceasefire with Hamas in order to bring home the approximately 100 hostages who are still in the Gaza Strip and many of whom are presumed dead.

According to the Israel Democracy HQ – Hofshi B’Artzenu organization, more than 150,000 people attended a rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening. Many protesters expressed their anger and frustration at Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partners, accusing them of prolonging the war and endangering the country’s security and the hostages.

Updated: June 23, 2024, 6:55 p.m.