36 Israeli strikes on Gaza killed 'only women, children': UN
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The UN Human Rights Office has raised grave concerns over Israeli aggression on Gaza, revealing that 36 verified Israeli airstrikes resulted in the killing of only women and children.
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Palestinians grieve over the bodies of their relatives, who were killed in an Israeli airstrike, at the Al-Maamadani Baptist Hospital, in Gaza City, on Thursday, April 3, 2025 (AP)
The United Nations on Friday raised alarm over the human toll of Israeli aggression on Gaza, revealing that its analysis of 36 Israeli airstrikes showed only women and children were massacred; i.e. no fighters were involved, refuting repeated Israeli claims of targeting Resistance fighters in every strike.
The UN also condemned the mounting humanitarian crisis and warned that "Israel’s" evacuation orders were effectively forcing civilians into smaller, more dangerous areas.
“These military strikes are leaving nowhere safe,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office, during a press briefing in Geneva.
Between March 18 and April 9, 2025, the UN recorded around 224 Israeli strikes targeting residential buildings and shelters for internally displaced Palestinians. Of those, “in some 36 strikes about which the UN Human Rights Office corroborated information, the fatalities recorded so far were only women and children,” Shamdasani said. “Overall, a large percentage of fatalities are children and women.”
She referenced an April 6 airstrike on the Abu Issa family home in Deir al-Balah, which killed one girl, four women, and a four-year-old boy.
Occupation aircraft destroyed a house with its residents in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, last night, killing and wounding others from the Abu Issa family, including children. #Gaza #اضراب_شامل_يوم_الاثنين pic.twitter.com/a3WHjcUpZb
— VOICE OF GAZA 🇵🇸 (@18Feb1995) April 7, 2025
Shamdasani also criticized Israeli “evacuation orders", saying they are not protecting civilians but instead contributing to their ongoing displacement.
"Despite Israeli military orders instructing civilians to relocate to the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, strikes continued on tents in that area housing displaced people, with at least 23 such incidents recorded by the Office since 18 March,” she said.
Referring to "Israel’s" expanding control over territory in Gaza, she warned, “Large areas are being seized and added to Israel's security zones, leaving Gaza smaller and more isolated,” citing comments by Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant.
Shamdasani did not mince words, asserting, “Let us be clear, these so-called evacuation orders are actually displacement orders, leading to displacement of the population of Gaza into ever shrinking spaces. Permanently displacing the civilian population within occupied territories amounts to forcible transfer, which is a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and it is a crime against humanity.”
The UN rights office further warned that the cumulative effect of "Israel's" actions could endanger the very existence of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
“The death, the destruction, the displacement, the denial of access to basic necessities within Gaza and the repeated suggestion that Gazans should leave the territory entirely raise real concerns as to the future viability of Palestinians as a group in Gaza,” Shamdasani said.
Israeli aggression on Gaza kills 40 Palestinians in 24 hours
The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced on Thursday that 40 Palestinians were martyred and 146 others were injured in 24 hours as a result of ongoing Israeli airstrikes.
The Ministry added that the total death toll from the Israeli aggression on Gaza had risen to over 50,886, with at least 115,875 people injured since October 7, 2023.
It issued an urgent call to replenish the medical supplies in hospitals and primary care centers, as it reported a critical and unprecedented shortage of essential medicines and medical consumables. The shortage has reached alarming levels, with 37% of the essential medicines and 59% of medical consumables now depleted.
In particular, the Ministry noted that 80,000 diabetic patients and 110,000 people suffering from high blood pressure are unable to receive their required medications in primary care centers. Moreover, 54% of cancer and blood disease medications are now out of stock, further escalating the health crisis.
'Israel' denied 68% of 170 humanitarian aid requests
UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Wednesday that "Israeli authorities have denied eight out of 14 attempts by aid workers to coordinate access to people needing urgent assistance."
He added that since the latest escalation began, "Israel" has denied 68% of a total 170 UN coordination requests, severely restricting the delivery of life-saving aid to more than two million Palestinians.
The statement follows remarks by Secretary-General António Guterres, who earlier this week described Gaza as a "killing field" and noted that the United Nations would not participate in any aid mechanism that compromises humanitarian principles or allows "Israel" to control and politicize relief efforts.
The aid blockade comes as "Israel" intensifies military operations, including a ground assault launched last Friday in Shejaiya, a densely populated neighborhood in northern Gaza.
The assault began shortly after "Israel" resumed airstrikes on March 18, following Hamas' rejection of a US-backed ceasefire proposal that failed to meet key Palestinian demands: a permanent end to hostilities, full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and the lifting of the blockade.
