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Sunday, August 3, 2014

International outrage over the deadly shelling of a UN school in Rafah



Rafah card situation.
Rafah card situation. | The World
At least ten Palestinians have been killed, Sunday, Aug. 3, in a bombing Hit a UN school that welcomes refugees in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

SCENES OF CHAOS

The school run by UNRWA [United Nations Relief and Works United Nations for Palestine Refugees in the Near East] was transformed into a center for about 3,000 refugees after the war began between Hamas and Israel on July 8.

"According to preliminary information, there are many dead and injured after a bomb" first explained the spokesman of the UN organization. Journalists on the spot described scenes of chaos, where rescuers démenaiennt as they could to evacuate the wounded, amid current Gazans out of breath in pools of blood with children in their arms.

A child asks for help in the ruins of the hit by an Israeli strike in Rafah, on August 3rd school.
A child asks for help in the ruins of the hit by an Israeli strike in Rafah, on August 3rd school. | REUTERS / Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
Then Sunday night, the Israelis have acknowledged fired "near" in this sector:

"The Israeli army has targeted three Islamic Jihad terrorists mounted on a motorcycle near an UNRWA school in Rafah. The defense forces of Israel examine the effects of the reform this post. "
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also said, without directly addressing the bombed school: "Israel does not direct its fire at civilians and regret any attack that hits civilians in a non intentionnnelle."

"THIS MADNESS MUST STOP"

Expressing "very affected", the Secretary General of the UN Ban Ki-moon called the bombing a "clear violation of international humanitarian law" in a statement in which he referred to a "scandal":

"This is a scandal and morally criminal. This madness must stop. "
Without explicitly assigning responsibility for the attack on Rafah to one side or the other, Mr. Ban stressed that the Israeli army was "repeatedly informed of the location" shelters UN three of which have been recently affected by deadly bombings. These shelters "should be secure and not combat zones areas," he said.

Read also the reactions: Gaza: international community increase the tone

The United States, key allies of Israel, are said to share "appalled" by a "bombing shameful." The French President, Francois Hollande, said it was "unacceptable" the bombing of the school and asked that those responsible for this action, he has not appointed, "for their actions."

Thirty Palestinians had been killed in the bombing of UN schools, including Beit Hanoun and Jabaliya (north), sparking a fierce international condemnation emotion and the United Nations. UNRWA had openly accused Israel of being behind the drama of Jabaliya.

Read also our article: UN accuses Israel of "deliberately defy" international law



1,712 Palestinians killed since July 8

According to a toll released Saturday by the Palestinian aid, 1,712 Palestinians, the vast majority civilians, were killed. This balance increases over the bombings, but also as research discovering new bodies under the rubble.
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) advance another record, killed in 1439. Of these, at least 852 civilians, including 252 children. Some 250,000 Palestinians were displaced by the conflict, more than 170,000 have sought refuge in one of the 82 centers managed by the UN.
Israeli side, 63 soldiers and three civilians were killed and 400 others injured. The army announced that it has hit more than 4,000 "targets" in the Gaza Strip and has identified about 2,000 rockets into Israel.