Israeli Airstrike Kills U.N. Worker And His Family

A United Nations officials has been killed along with more than 70 members of his extended family on Friday near Gaza city.

Issam Al Mughrabi, 56, an official of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was killed along with his wife and 5 children. The Israeli air strike also reportedly killed more than 70 members of his extended family.

“The loss of Issam and his family has deeply affected us all. The UN and civilians in Gaza are not a target,” UNDP administrator Achim Steiner said in a statement. Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres said on Friday that throughout the UN’s history, they had never witnessed the death of their staff in such high numbers.

The bombardment of densely populated areas in Gaza have not only resulted in rising death tolls but also the inability to properly distribute aid. This has added further weight to statements made by several aid groups, calling the U.N. resolution that was passed on Friday as “insufficient” and “watered down”. According to an official statement by Secretary General Guterres, 136 staff members of the United Nations have been killed since October 7th.

Tags: Israel Palestine UN