The World Health Organization said the Israeli military attacked its staff residence and main warehouse in the central Gazan city of Deir al-Balah on Monday, endangering humanitarian workers and compromising relief operations in the besieged Palestinian territory.
The UN agency said its staff accommodation was struck three times, causing a fire and significant damage.
“Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot towards Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. Male staff and family members were handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on the spot, and screened at gunpoint,” WHO said.
Two agency personnel and two family members were detained during the raid. According to WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, three were later released while one staff member remained in Israeli custody.
“WHO demands the immediate release of the detained staff and protection of all its staff,” Dr Tedros said.
The UN agency said its main warehouse in Deir al-Balah, located within an Israeli-declared evacuation zone, was damaged in a separate strike on Sunday, triggering explosions and a fire inside the facility. The Israeli military is yet to respond to these allegations by WHO.
The UN agency vowed to continue and expand its operations in the area, a critical centre of humanitarian aid distribution during more than 21 months of war.
Deir al-Balah is densely packed with Palestinians displaced by Israeli bombardment and evacuation orders.
Israeli tanks entered the city’s southern and eastern neighbourhoods on Monday for the first time since the conflict began.
Tank shelling in the city hit homes and mosques, killing at least three people and injuring several more, according to medics. Gunfire was reportedly heard throughout the day and thousands of people fled on foot or using donkey carts, eyewitnesses said.
More than 25 countries, including the UK, France, Canada, Japan and Australia, issued a joint statement on Monday urging an immediate end to the war. The signatories criticised Israel’s restriction of aid, describing it as “dangerous” and a violation of international humanitarian law.
“The Israeli government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable,” they said. “Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law.”
Israel’s foreign ministry rejected the statement, saying it was “disconnected from reality and sends the wrong message to Hamas”.
US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, also rejected the statement from many of Washington’s closest allies, denouncing it as “disgusting” in a post on X and saying they should instead pressure the “savages of Hamas”.
