UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell stated that the Israeli killing of over 50 children in a “deadly” 48-hour period in Jabalia, northern Gaza, marks another “dark chapter” in the “terrible” Israeli war against the besieged territory.

In a statement released Saturday on the UN agency’s website, Russell emphasized that Israeli forces have not only taken the lives of many Palestinians, including children, but have also cut humanitarian aid and targeted UN personnel.

“This has already been a deadly weekend of attacks in North Gaza. In the past 48 hours alone, over 50 children have reportedly been killed in Jabalia, where strikes leveled two residential buildings sheltering hundreds of people,” she stressed.

This has already been a deadly weekend of attacks in North Gaza.

Attacks on civilians, including humanitarian workers, and what remains of Gaza’s civilian facilities and infrastructure must stop.

My statement👇 https://t.co/TLNYtbN6du

— Catherine Russell (@unicefchief) November 2, 2024

Russell also drew attention to the risks faced by humanitarian workers, particularly those involved in sensitive initiatives like polio vaccination.

“And this morning, the personal vehicle of a UNICEF staff member working on the polio vaccination campaign came under fire by what we believe to be a quadcopter while driving through Jabalia-Elnazla. The car was damaged. Fortunately, the staff member was not injured. But she has been left deeply shaken,” she said.

At the same time, she reported that at least three children sustained injuries from another attack near a vaccination clinic in Sheikh Radwan, where a polio vaccination campaign was in progress.

Horrific level of child deaths in North Gaza

Russell condemned the attacks on Jabalia, the vaccination clinic, and on UNICEF staff members as part of what she described as "Israel's" broader genocidal strategy of indiscriminate strikes against civilians in Gaza.

“The attacks on Jabalia, the vaccination clinic, and the UNICEF staff member are yet further examples of the grave consequences of the indiscriminate strikes on civilians in the Gaza Strip,” she stated.

She stressed that international humanitarian law requires the protection of civilians, civilian structures, humanitarian workers, and their vehicles during wars.

Displacement or evacuation orders do not absolve any party from their responsibility to distinguish between military and civilian targets, ensure proportionality, and take all feasible precautions during attacks, according to Russell.

“Yet these principles are being flaunted over and over again, leaving tens of thousands of children killed, injured, and deprived of essential services needed for survival,” she lamented.

She called for an end to attacks on civilians, humanitarian workers, and the remaining civilian facilities and infrastructure in Gaza, emphasizing the grave conditions in North Gaza, where the entire Palestinian population, especially children, is at imminent risk of death from disease, starvation, and ongoing bombardment.

Russell concluded by affirming that UNICEF is requesting that "Israel" conduct an immediate investigation into the circumstances surrounding the attack on its staff member and take actions to hold accountable those responsible.

Over 100,000 people besieged in North Gaza: Civil Defense - Exclusive

Over 100,000 people are currently in the besieged northern Gaza Strip, 60% of whom are children and women, Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal told Al Mayadeen on Sunday.

Regarding medical services in the northern part of the Strip, Basal pointed out that there is no medical treatment available there, adding that the world, which boasts about democracy, is watching Gaza being slaughtered.

Civil Defense is receiving numerous pleas from residents in northern Gaza calling for help to rescue and recover the wounded and martyrs from under the rubble, the spokesperson indicated.