‘World Stands Disgraced’: 20 Killed in Israeli UN School Shelling
July 30, 2014 04:20
Rt.com
Twenty people have been killed after a shell hit the UNRWA girls' school in Jabalia refugee camp, emergency services say. The UN condemned Israeli actions in the strongest possible terms, calling them a serious violation of international law.
A UN official confirmed the shelling, saying that the missile hit a bathroom and two classrooms in the school, AFP reported.
The outer wall of the complex was damaged by shellfire, and in a targeted classroom people were picking body parts off the blood-soaked floor, according to the agency’s correspondent in the area.
More than one shell hit the school. The first in the courtyard and the second a section primarily used by female pupils, RT contributor Harry Fear reported from the scene. Currently, over five UN schools are caught in the fighting, he added.
The shelling happened after 5:30am local time (02:30 GMT).
Almost 15,000 Palestinians were forced to seek shelter in 83 UNRWA schools, according to the UN refugee agency.
The UN relief and works agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has strongly condemned the Israeli shelling of a UN school last night.
“Children killed in their sleep; this is an affront to all of us, a source of universal shame. Today the world stands disgraced,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl said in a statement on Wednesday.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms this serious violation of international law by Israeli forces,” he said, calling on the international community to take deliberate international political action to put an immediate end to the continuing carnage.
All in all, 43 people have been killed in Gaza overnight in shelling carried out by Israeli forces.
On Wednesday, the IDF announced a unilateral four-hour humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza beginning from 3pm local time (12:00 GMT).
The IDF also warned Gaza residents not to return “to areas from which they have been asked to evacuate.”
It’s not the first time that an UNRWA facility has been targeted in Gaza: on Tuesday, the UN refugee agency stated that it had found a cache of rockets at one of its schools in the Gaza Strip.
The agency condemned those responsible for the action.
“We condemn the group or groups who endangered civilians by placing these munitions in our school. This is yet another flagrant violation of the neutrality of our premises. We call on all the warring parties to respect the inviolability of UN property," UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said in a statement.
Israel holds no responsibility for the deaths of people during the shelling of the Gaza school, Israel’s ambassador to Russia said in her official statement on the issue.
“Regarding the Hamas accusing Israel of shelling and inflicting damage on the school, after a probe by the Israeli army, it turned out that the school in Beit Hanoun was empty during the shelling,” Dorit Golender said.
She added that Hamas allegedly regularly uses civilian buildings like schools and hospitals to store weaponry.
“Three missiles were found hidden in UN schools. The latest incident was reported at 3am on Wednesday,” Golender said.
The shelling came as a Palestinian delegation was preparing for a trip to Cairo to discuss a temporary humanitarian ceasefire.
The conflict, so far just over three weeks old, has seen over 1,260 people killed, according to figures provided by Gaza authorities.
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| Another United Nations school bombed in Gaza, 20 people were killed. |
Rt.com
Twenty people have been killed after a shell hit the UNRWA girls' school in Jabalia refugee camp, emergency services say. The UN condemned Israeli actions in the strongest possible terms, calling them a serious violation of international law.
A UN official confirmed the shelling, saying that the missile hit a bathroom and two classrooms in the school, AFP reported.
The outer wall of the complex was damaged by shellfire, and in a targeted classroom people were picking body parts off the blood-soaked floor, according to the agency’s correspondent in the area.
More than one shell hit the school. The first in the courtyard and the second a section primarily used by female pupils, RT contributor Harry Fear reported from the scene. Currently, over five UN schools are caught in the fighting, he added.
The shelling happened after 5:30am local time (02:30 GMT).
Almost 15,000 Palestinians were forced to seek shelter in 83 UNRWA schools, according to the UN refugee agency.
The UN relief and works agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has strongly condemned the Israeli shelling of a UN school last night.
“Children killed in their sleep; this is an affront to all of us, a source of universal shame. Today the world stands disgraced,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl said in a statement on Wednesday.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms this serious violation of international law by Israeli forces,” he said, calling on the international community to take deliberate international political action to put an immediate end to the continuing carnage.
All in all, 43 people have been killed in Gaza overnight in shelling carried out by Israeli forces.
On Wednesday, the IDF announced a unilateral four-hour humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza beginning from 3pm local time (12:00 GMT).
The IDF also warned Gaza residents not to return “to areas from which they have been asked to evacuate.”
It’s not the first time that an UNRWA facility has been targeted in Gaza: on Tuesday, the UN refugee agency stated that it had found a cache of rockets at one of its schools in the Gaza Strip.
The agency condemned those responsible for the action.
“We condemn the group or groups who endangered civilians by placing these munitions in our school. This is yet another flagrant violation of the neutrality of our premises. We call on all the warring parties to respect the inviolability of UN property," UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said in a statement.
Israel holds no responsibility for the deaths of people during the shelling of the Gaza school, Israel’s ambassador to Russia said in her official statement on the issue.
“Regarding the Hamas accusing Israel of shelling and inflicting damage on the school, after a probe by the Israeli army, it turned out that the school in Beit Hanoun was empty during the shelling,” Dorit Golender said.
She added that Hamas allegedly regularly uses civilian buildings like schools and hospitals to store weaponry.
“Three missiles were found hidden in UN schools. The latest incident was reported at 3am on Wednesday,” Golender said.
The shelling came as a Palestinian delegation was preparing for a trip to Cairo to discuss a temporary humanitarian ceasefire.
The conflict, so far just over three weeks old, has seen over 1,260 people killed, according to figures provided by Gaza authorities.
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