No Immunity for UNRWA Schools: Zionist Entity Normalizes Nightly Massacres

By Yousef Fares – Sep 13, 2024

The Israeli killing machine continues its never-ending massacres that have become a daily routine in all areas of the Gaza Strip. In fact, Israeli bombing of residential homes that shelter dozens of residents and host displaced people has become a routine post-midnight event. The occupation army chooses the night because that is when the people are inside the house and sleeping, which guarantees the largest number of casualties. During the past week, warplanes bombed more than 10 houses in the early dawn hours. One of those attacks was against the home of Professor Akram Al-Najjar from Al-Quds Open University, in Jabalia al-Balad area in the northern Gaza Strip. Al-Najjar’s oldest son was a journalist working for Al-Aqsa Satellite Channel, who was martyred during the second ground operation in Jabalia camp in early May, and left behind an extended family consisting of his parents, wife, and six children.

However, on September 12, at one a.m., warplanes raided the house, leading to the martyrdom of the entire family. The same crime was repeated against the Lubbad, Siam, Dahdouh, Al-Bilbisi, and Al-Qara families. These massacres of entire families, which primarily claim the lives of women and children, serve no purpose other than genocide and vengeance. The zionist enemy targets resistance fighters and follows up against their families, operating under the assumption that those who die leave behind a legacy of retribution for their children. The zionist army carries out these criminal acts day after day, to the point where they have become commonplace events that barely draw attention. Even the images of massacres and victims are now treated as mere annoyances on social media platforms.

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The other face of the genocide is reflected in the daily targeting of shelters which house families whose homes have been demolished and who lack any means of supporting themselves. On September 12, warplanes bombed a shelter in Al-Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, where 40 people were martyred. It was a school belonging to UNRWA. The director was hosting teaching staff who were planning to develop an alternative educational plan to be implemented at the beginning of next October. Six UNRWA employees were killed in the massacre, joining 220 other employees who have been killed in various circumstances since the beginning of the war. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres commented on the event, saying in a press statement, “The endless and senseless killing since the beginning of the war has led to the loss of more than 200 of our staff.”

The zionist entity, however, shows complete disregard for any international institution. Investigations previously published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reveal that occupation soldiers have been given unrestricted authority to open fire. At times, these soldiers shell and shoot at houses purely for entertainment or to vent their frustrations. Some even commemorate personal occasions by detonating occupied homes, burying residents under the rubble, and taking trophy photos of each atrocity. Other recurring incidents accompany these major massacres: targeting food stands, bombing families as they gather firewood, striking pre-coordinated aid convoys, and firing from quadcopter drones at overcrowded refugee tents. As these horrors unfold daily and death torments the living, the world looks on as if watching a repetitive film, desperate for an ending to preserve the planet’s collective sanity.

(Al-Akhbar)

Translation: Orinoco Tribune

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