KATHMANDU: The United Nations has condemned as “shocking” the global silence and inaction following an Israeli strike on Gaza’s Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis that killed at least 20 people, including five journalists and four health workers.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), described the attack as “silencing the last remaining voices reporting about children dying silently amid famine.” He wrote on X, “The world’s indifference and inaction is shocking.”
Gaza’s civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassa said an Israeli explosive drone hit a hospital building, followed by an air strike as the wounded were being evacuated.
International media outlets Reuters, the Associated Press, and Al Jazeera confirmed that their contributors were among the journalists killed. The attack comes just days after the UN officially declared famine in Gaza.
The UN human rights office denounced the strike, reiterating that “journalists are not a target. Hospitals are not a target.” Spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani urged accountability, noting that “at least 247 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023. These journalists are the eyes and ears of the international community, and they must be protected.”
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed four health workers were also among the dead, with 50 others injured, including critically ill patients. “While people in Gaza are being starved, their already limited access to health care is being further crippled by repeated attacks,” Tedros warned.
He called for an immediate ceasefire: “We cannot say it loudly enough—STOP attacks on health care. Ceasefire now!”
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