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UNRWA death toll in Gaza rises to 57

The agency's commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini urged efforts to provide continued humanitarian aid to the enclave

DUBAI, October 27. /TASS/. At least 57 employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) have been killed since the latest escalation in the Middle East, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said in an interview with Qatar’s Al Jazeera television.

"Some 57 of our staff have been killed in the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Since it is impossible to separate Palestinians form Hamas, all civilians and hospital buildings should be protected," Lazzarini emphasized. On Thursday, 38 UNRWA employees were reported killed.

Lazzarini also urged efforts to provide continued humanitarian aid to the enclave.

Addressing an open discussion on the situation in the Middle East at the UN Security Council on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his condolences on the death of UNRWA employees in Israeli air strikes in Gaza.

Tensions in the Middle East flared up again on October 7 when Hamas militants launched a surprise incursion into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian movement described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel declared a total siege of Gaza and started carrying out strikes on the Palestinian enclave, as well as on certain areas in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also taking place in the West Bank.

According to the latest reports, in Israel, more than 1,400 people have been killed in the conflict, with over 5,200 of others being injured. Over 7,000 Palestinians have lost their lives and almost 18,500 people have been wounded in Israeli strikes on Gaza.