UK, Ireland express concern over Israeli attack targeting UN compound in Gaza

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The UK and Ireland expressed concern Wednesday over the killing of a UN aid worker in an attack that targeted a United Nations-affiliated facility in the Gaza Strip.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said his thoughts are with the victims and their families after a UN compound in Gaza was hit.

"This incident must be investigated transparently and those responsible held to account. The UN and humanitarian workers must be protected," he wrote on X.

Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister (Tanaiste) and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Defense, Simon Harris, underlined that the world has witnessed "appalling scenes" from Gaza again.

"Further Israeli airstrikes and a new ground operation have brought fresh suffering to the people of Gaza and have breached the ceasefire," he said in a statement.

Harris noted that humanitarian aid into Gaza must resume immediately while expressing that the UN and other humanitarian workers must be protected at all times as they carry out their lifesaving work.

"Attacks on UN facilities are a violation of international humanitarian law," he said, adding "the international community cannot accept this step backwards."

Urging all parties to return to talks aimed at implementing the second phase of the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, Harris said this means meeting their commitments in full, leading to a release of all hostages and the resumption of humanitarian aid.

Two UN guesthouses in Deir al Balah were hit in Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep sorrow over the killing of a UN aid worker.

At least 436 people have been killed and more than 670 injured in renewed Israeli airstrikes in Gaza since Tuesday, shattering the ceasefire agreement that took hold in January.

Nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and more than 112,000 injured in a brutal Israeli military campaign in Gaza since October 2023.

In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.