UN refugee agency condemns renewed Israeli strikes on Gaza, calls for return to ceasefire

By Betul Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) denounced the death of civilians in renewed Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip despite a ceasefire agreement.

“Awful scenes of civilians killed among them children following waves of heavy bombardment from Israeli Forces overnight,” UNRWA Commission-General Philippe Lazzarini said on his X account.

The Israeli army pounded the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing more than 404 people and injuring hundreds, breaking a ceasefire agreement that took effect on Jan. 19.

Images emerging from Gaza showed that the majority of the victims were civilians, including women and children, whose homes were bombed during the night.

“Fueling ‘hell on earth’ by resuming the war will only bring more despair & suffering,” Lazzarini said. “A return to the ceasefire is a must.”

More than 48,500 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 112,000 others injured in a brutal Israeli military campaign in Gaza since October 2023.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.