New York, MINA – Three additional staff members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) were killed on Monday in Gaza, pushing the agency’s total death toll to over 300, the UN confirmed.
“Tragically, three more UNRWA staff were killed today,” said UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric during a press briefing in New York, Anadolu Agency reported.
UNRWA had previously announced on Sunday that the number of staff members killed had reached the “gruesome milestone of 300,” with most losing their lives alongside family members during Israeli attacks.
“The vast majority of staff were killed by the Israeli Army with their children & loved ones: whole families wiped out,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini in a statement. He emphasized that several staff members were killed while actively serving their communities.
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“Nothing justifies these killings,” Lazzarini stated. “Impunity will lead to more killing. Those responsible must be held accountable.”
UNRWA, established in 1949, supports nearly 5.9 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. The organization has been a vital provider of education, healthcare, and humanitarian aid in Gaza.
Since March 2, Israel has enforced a near-total blockade on Gaza, closing all crossings to food, medicine, and humanitarian supplies. This has worsened an already catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with nearly 2.4 million people in Gaza entirely dependent on aid.
Israel’s military offensive, launched in response to a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, has resulted in the deaths of more than 53,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children. []
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Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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