Thousands of displaced Palestinians were staying in the camp in
Khan Younis, and at least 19 people were killed, according to
latest media reports.
‘Nowhere is safe in Gaza'
“While the IDF said it struck Hamas militants who were operating
in a command-and-control centre embedded inside the Humanitarian
zone, I underline that international humanitarian law,
including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and
precautions in attack, must be upheld at all times,” Tor
Wennesland, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace
Process, said in a statement.
He emphasized that civilians must never be used as human
shields.
“Yet again, such actions only underscore that nowhere is
safe in Gaza,” he said.
End the war
The envoy repeated his call for all sides to immediately reach an
agreement that will bring about the release of all hostages and a
ceasefire in Gaza, adding that the killing of civilians must
stop, and the horrific war must end.
“Ultimately, only a political path that outlines tangible,
irreversible steps towards ending the occupation and establishing
a two-State solution can put a durable end to the suffering of
Palestinians and Israelis,” he said, noting that the UN stands
ready to support all efforts towards this goal.
Polio convoy stopped
Meanwhile, the UN agency that assists Palestine refugees,
UNRWA, reported that on
Monday the Israeli army stopped a convoy heading to north Gaza to
vaccinate children against polio and held it for more than eight
hours, despite prior detailed coordination.
UNRWA, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Children's
Fund (UNICEF) launched a
three-part campaign this month to protect more than 600,000 young
children in the enclave against polio after the disease was
detected in sewage samples in June.
The UN convoy carried national and international staff travelling
to roll out the campaign in Gaza City and northern Gaza, UNRWA
Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Tuesday in
a post on the social media
platform X, formerly Twitter.
Staff threatened, vehicles damaged
The convoy was stopped at gun point just after the Wadi Gaza
checkpoint with threats to detain UN staff. Heavy damage was
caused by bulldozers to the UN armoured vehicles.
Mr. Lazzarini noted that while all staff and the convoy were
released and back safe at base, he was unsure whether the polio
campaign would be able to take place in northern Gaza on Tuesday.
“This significant incident is the latest in a series of
violations against UN staff including shootings at convoys
and arrests by the Israeli Armed Forces at checkpoints despite
prior notification,” he said.
“UN Staff must be allowed to undertake their duties in safety
and be protected at all times in accordance with international
humanitarian law. Gaza is no different.”
Vaccinations underway
In a tweet later on Tuesday,
UNRWA sent an update that despite the convoy delay “our teams
have been able to vaccinate thousands of children in north Gaza
today.”
“This is a race against time”, the agency added. “The spread of
polio is a very real threat. Our colleagues continue to do the
impossible to reach every child under the age of 10 across the
Gaza Strip.”
One convoy, two missions
The delayed convoy was composed of two missions, UN health agency
WHO said on Tuesday in Geneva.
One team was bringing fuel and vehicles for the third phase of
the vaccination campaign, while another was attempting to bring
desperately needed fuel to the embattled Al-Shifa Hospital in
Gaza City.
The enclave's largest medical centre reopened its emergency
department in early September after its destruction in an Israeli
raid in November 2023 following claims that Palestinian armed
groups were using the site for military purposes.
‘Not an isolated incident'
“This is not an isolated incident,” said WHO spokesperson Tarik
Jašarević, who deplored the lack of a “functioning deconfliction
mechanism,” 11 months into the Gaza war.
Between 7 and 10 September, WHO teams tried to reach Al-Shifa
hospital four times with no success.
“But we will try again today,” he said. “We really do our best,
but this is a pattern: in August the number of denied requests
for access doubled compared to previous months”.
