Israeli Attacks on Critical Facilities Prompt UNRWA Chief to Call Gaza A ‘Never-Ending Hell’
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees condemned recent Israeli attacks on central Gaza, including strikes on an Al-Aqsa Hospital encampment and a UNRWA school that killed at least 20 people and derailed a polio vaccination campaign.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees, described the situation in Gaza as "another night of horror" following attacks on a hospital and an UNRWA school in central Gaza.
"Tents went up in flames due to an airstrike on the courtyard of Al-Aqsa Hospital where people sought shelter," Lazzarini said, referring to the overnight attack in Deir el-Balah.
"In the same area, an UNRWA school was hit, with 20 people reported killed," he added.
The school, which was intended to be a polio vaccination site, was severely damaged, preventing its use in the ongoing vaccination campaign, according to Lazzarini.
"Gaza is a never-ending hell. All of this must not become the new norm. Humanity must prevail," he emphasized.
The UNRWA condemned Israel's attack on the school in Nuseirat, which was sheltering displaced families and was to be part of a polio vaccination campaign. Gaza’s Government Media Office reported that 22 people were killed and 80 others wounded in the Nuseirat strike.
Additionally, the overnight attack on Al-Aqsa Hospital resulted in a large fire in a tent encampment, causing dozens of casualties. Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip also wounded 220 people, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
The ministry further reported that since October 2023, at least 42,289 Palestinians have been killed, and 98,684 injured due to Israeli attacks. They warned that the actual death toll could be higher, with many bodies still buried under the rubble of widespread destruction.
The UN has called for humanitarian pauses to be observed as several agencies, including UNRWA, UNICEF, and WHO, prepare to start a second round of polio vaccinations across Gaza. The campaign, set to begin on October 14, aims to vaccinate around 590,000 children under the age of ten within two weeks.
In the first round of the campaign, a humanitarian pause was agreed upon, allowing health workers to operate safely from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day in designated areas.
However, Palestinian Health Ministry officials voiced concerns about the campaign’s success, stressing that continued humanitarian truces with Israel are necessary for health workers to safely administer vaccines. They warned that Israel's evacuation orders and ongoing siege on northern Gaza could hinder the second round of vaccinations.