Rabat – The UN Human Rights Office expressed on Tuesday “grave concern” about the continued Israeli aggression in the Gaza Strip, citing special concern over the fact that the occupation forces ordered residents to move to Middle Gaza before bombarding them.
“We are gravely concerned about the continued bombardment of Middle Gaza by Israeli forces, which has claimed more than 100 Palestinian lives since Christmas Eve,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango said in an official statement.
Magango detailed that the Israeli occupation forces carried out more than 50 strikes in Middle Gaza on December 24 and 25, including attacks on the Bureij, Nuseirat, and Maghazi refugee camps.
The combined death toll from the Al-Maghazi and Al-Bureij camps has risen to at least 131 according to Doctors Without Borders, and all roads connecting the camps have been destroyed, rendering relief aid virtually inaccessible.
“We restate our warning that all attacks must strictly adhere to the principles of international humanitarian law, including distinction, proportionality and precaution in attack,” Magango’s statement continued.
“Israeli forces must take all measures available to protect civilians,” he concluded. “Warnings and evacuation orders do not absolve them of the full range of their international humanitarian law obligations.”
Read also: Palestinian Death Toll Jumps to Over 20,500
The IOF sparked new uproar over the past few days after launching several airstrikes targeting various civilian sites and killing over 100 Palestinians, with most of the victims being women and children.
“The bombs fell on homes and buildings… destroying neighborhoods and infrastructure, such as roads leading in and out of the refugee camps,” Al Jazeera reported on Monday.
Despite facing strong condemnations from human rights advocates and much of the international community, Israeli forces have relentlessly continued their aggression in the occupied Palestinian territories over the past two months.
Despite this, institutions like the UN have remained unable to act to stop Israel’s attacks, as the US has used its veto rights to block ceasefire resolutions from making their way through the Security Council.
As of today, official estimates indicate that over 20,000 Palestinians (most of them children and women) have perished in Israel’s murderous war in Gaza.
