Nearly 100 UN staff killed in Israel-Hamas war — highest in a single conflict

The United Nations (UN) says scores of its workers have been killed in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group.

The inter-agency standing committee (IASC) on the situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory announced the development in a statement signed by 18 heads of different UN bodies on Monday.

Some of the signatories included Tedros Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO); Catherine Russell, executive director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); Sima Bahous, executive director of UN Women; Cindy McCain, executive director of World Food Programme (WFP) and Martin Griffiths, emergency relief coordinator and under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs (OCHA).

The IASC which is the longest-standing and highest-level humanitarian coordination forum of the UN system called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza.

The call comes as the White House said President Joe Biden began the week with a call to Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli prime minister, to discuss humanitarian pauses.

Meanwhile, Israel has continued to bombard Hamas-ruled Gaza, where millions of civilians also reside, as part of its vow to eliminate the militant group in retaliation for the unprecedented attack on October 7.

In Israel, some 1,400 people have been killed and thousands have been injured, according to the Israeli authorities.

More than 200 people, including children, have been taken hostage.

“However, the horrific killings of even more civilians in Gaza is an outrage, as is cutting off  2.2 million Palestinians from food, water, medicine, electricity and fuel,” the UN IASC said.In Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, nearly 9,500 people have been killed, including 3,900 children and over 2,400 women.

More than 23,000 injured people require immediate treatment within overstretched hospitals.

“An entire population is besieged and under attack, denied access to the essentials for survival, bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals and places of worship. This is unacceptable,” the UN added.

“More than 100 attacks against health care have been reported.

“Scores of aid workers have been killed since October 7, including 88 UNRWA colleagues – the highest number of United Nations fatalities ever recorded in a single conflict.

“We renew our plea for the parties to respect all their obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law. We renew our call for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilians held hostage.

“Civilians and the infrastructure they rely on—including hospitals, shelters and schools—must be protected.

“More aid—food, water, medicine and of course fuel—must enter Gaza safely, swiftly and at the scale needed, and must reach people in need, especially women and children, wherever they are.

“We need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. It’s been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now.”

Guterres earlier announced that the UN and its partners are launching a $1.2 billion humanitarian appeal to help the entire population of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.