UNRWA chief urges Israel to allow food into Gaza
Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), on Friday urged Israel to allow the organization's food and nutrition convoys reach northern Gaza and to open additional land crossings to facilitate the delivery of aid amid international warnings of famine in the coastal enclave. Lazzarini made the remarks in a post on social media platform X, a day after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague ordered Israel take all necessary measures to ensure basic aid reaches the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip. He called on countries to increase pressure for the implementation of the court's order and to reconsider their decisions regarding funding the agency, emphasizing the urgency of bold actions to prevent famine in Gaza. He warned that the living conditions of over two million people in Gaza were deteriorating, and Gaza was becoming an impossible place for dignified living. Meanwhile, at least 19 Palestinians, including a police officer, were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the east of Gaza City, Hamas-run media office said on Friday. In a press statement, Hamas said that the Israeli army killed 10 of its members and two civilians, including a Palestinian woman, in strikes targeting a police security force that was carrying out humanitarian activities at the Shujaiya Sports Club. (Xinhua)