UNRWA says Israeli army destroyed its premises in Jabalia

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) on Friday said that it "received horrific reports" from its premises in the Jabalia refugee camp, the northern Gaza Strip, during the Israeli military offensive in the camp.

Earlier, the Israeli army completely withdrew from the Jabalia camp area and its surroundings after an offensive that lasted 20 days, according to an Anadolu correspondent.

In a statement, UNRWA said displaced people, including children, who were sheltering in its schools in Jabalia, were killed and injured by the Israeli army.

It added that "tents of people sheltering at our (UNRWA) school reportedly set on fire by IDF (Israeli army)."

UNRWA noted that it received reports that its offices in Jabalia were "destroyed by air strikes and bulldozed" by the Israeli forces.

So far, "more than 170 UNRWA premises have been damaged or destroyed across the Gaza Strip" since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict on Oct. 7, 2023.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since an attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

More than 36,200 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority being women and children, and nearly 81,800 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Nearly eight months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in its latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.