Gaza workers who have been undergoing a resume of Israeli air strikes, UN says

The UN said one of its workers was killed after being damaged in a Gaza yard on Wednesday and others were injured, adding that the situation was unclear.

The Hamas Party Health Ministry in the Palestinian Territory accused Israel of strike and said five injured foreign workers had arrived at the hospital. Israeli troops deny strikes in Deir al-Balah.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, it is after Israel said it is resuming combat in Gaza after a two-month ceasefire – a wave of strikes that killed more than 400 people.

On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it had “full effort to resume combat.”

One day later, the IDF said it would extend its ground operations in Gaza to the Netzarim corridor in the north and south of the demarcation zone.

The military added that the troops moved into the area to “establish a partial buffer between the north and southern Gaza.”

The United Nations initially said two of its workers had been killed, but later clarified that the second person was not a staff member.

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) said the building was located on a building in an “isolated” location “exploded or fired explosive ordnance.”

It added that there was no confirmation about the nature of the incident or the type of artillery used.

UNOPS Executive Director Jorge Moreira Da Silva described the incident as “not an accident” and added that “United Nations personnel and their premises must be protected by all parties”.

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement that two hotels were hit and called for a full investigation.

BBC-verified video shows the injured man – two people still wearing blue UN flame jackets – arrived at the hospital in an ambulance and a UN car.

In addition, at least 20 people were killed in air strikes in Gaza after Israel said it was resumed in the Palestinian territory.

Palestinian WAFA News Agency reported that two civilians were killed and five injured when Israeli drones hit a tent near the Al-Mawasi humanitarian zone.

Israel’s army said it targeted the place where the group was preparing to open fire on Israel. The military said Hamas-controlled ships were also attacked.

The bombing was not the same size as Tuesday’s – but it was not shown in Israel’s new attacks.

“The intensity of the killing is no longer beyond the scale now,” said Tom Fletcher, the UN Deputy Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief, of Tuesday’s strike.

A woman and child were killed overnight in an air strike north of Khan Yunis, while four others were killed during a strike in Gaza city, WAFA said.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health said 436 people have died in strikes since Tuesday, including 183 children.

Tuesday’s strike constituted the heaviest bombing since the fragile ceasefire and hostage exchange agreement on January 19, and after Israel and Hamas failed to agree on how to move it beyond the initial stages.

The deal involves three phases, and the second phase of negotiations would have started six weeks ago – but that didn’t happen.

In the proposed second phase, Israel will withdraw its troops from Gaza – but Israel and the United States have pushed for the extension of the first phase, freeing more hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners.

Netanyahu has taken the recovery of the battle as its main goal to return to Israel – to return to the hostages and “get rid of” Hamas – but the hostage families criticized the decision, saying it shows that the government has abandoned its loved ones.

Thousands of Israeli people joined the protests in Jerusalem, accusing Netanyahu of undermining democracy and restarting the offensive in Gaza without considering hostages.

Israel said Hamas is still holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive.

Egypt, a mediator of talks, said the fresh strike was “blatant” to the ceasefire.

Israel has previously imposed a total pause on all humanitarian aid entering Gaza, causing widespread international alerts.

“In two weeks, our food supply was rotting at the border, the drugs were expiring, the water was cut off, the power was cut off – all of which further punished civilians.”

He said he spoke with the UN Security Council on Tuesday to lift the lockdown and bring the ceasefire deal back on track, including the release of hostages.

The UN chief added: “I’m not here to ask for the moon.”

He said his team will “continue” in Gaza because they are determined to do everything they can to save as many survivors as possible.

“They said to us: About our values, we cannot stop the 21st century atrocities that occur before our eyes – not only happened, but also cheered before our eyes?”

Hamas has confirmed that several of its leaders were killed during a strike on Tuesday, including de facto government chief Essam a-da’lees.

Meanwhile, Islamic Jihad – his combatants participated in the October 7, 2023 attack, triggering the current conflict.

However, there are also many civilians, including dozens of children, considered dead.

It is now said that regional mediators are pushing Hamas to release some Israeli hostages in exchange for a downgrade.

But Netanyahu has said that going forward, all ceasefire negotiations will be “under fire.”

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel killed about 1,200 people and captured 251 people, of which 25 were released during the first phase of the ceasefire.

Hamas – The Ministry of Operations Health said Israel killed more than 48,500 Palestinians with a massive military offensive and caused massive damage to homes and infrastructure.