A day after targeting UNRWA school, Israeli army now attacks UNRWA headquarters
The Israeli army claimed in a statement that the operation is based on intelligence that indicates the presence of “Hamas and Islamic Jihad infrastructure, and operatives in Gaza City.”
A day after killing at least 16 Palestinians and injuring 50 others in an attack targeting UNRWA's Al-Jaouni school sheltering displaced people in al-Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, the Israeli army today (8 July) launched an attack on the UNRWA headquarters in the war-torn Palestinian enclave.
The Israeli army launched the "ground operation" in Gaza City, against targets including the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), claiming it housed weapons and investigation and detention rooms, reports Anadolu Agency.
The Israeli army claimed in a statement that the operation is based on intelligence that indicates the presence of "Hamas and Islamic Jihad infrastructure, and operatives in Gaza City."
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Referring to the attack on UNRWA headquarters, the Israeli army alleged that the building housed weapons, investigation and detention rooms of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
The army said it had previously conducted "operations" in the area "to eliminate Hamas operatives and destroy an underground tunnel route beneath the compound."
During the recent offensive, the Israeli army reportedly used loudspeakers to warn civilians to leave the building, promising a safe passage for noncombatants.
When the ground offensive began, the army statement said it warned civilians about military actions in the area, claiming that a route would be opened to allow uninvolved civilians to be evacuated.
UNRWA has yet to respond to the Israeli military attack on its headquarters.
On Saturday, the Israeli military claimed that it targeted Palestinian militants inside the Al-Jaouni school in Nuseirat, which Hamas fighters were reportedly using as a command centre.
Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since a 7 October attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.
More than 38,150 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 87,800 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Nine months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on 6 May.
