News - Middle East: Palestinian Ministry of Education says at least 4,037 students and 209 educational staff have been killed since the start of Israel's brutal aggression on the besieged Gaza Strip on October 7.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the ministry said that more than 7,259 students and 619 teachers were also injured in the besieged strip between October 7 and December 26. 

The ministry and several education-focused NGOs reported that 352 schools across the Gaza Strip have sustained damage, affecting the education of 400,700 students.

Three governorates namely Gaza, Khan Younis and North Gaza are highly affected, accounting for 74 percent of the total damage.

Israel has been under fire by the UN agencies and human rights organizations for the “collective punishment” of Gaza’s 2.3 million people.

The figures come as hospitals and schools, protected under international humanitarian law, have repeatedly been hit by Israeli strikes since the war erupted.

Israel has justified attacks on UN schools, universities and hospitals, saying they were used by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas. The regime has provided no proof for its claims.

Media reports have also debunked Israeli claims that Hamas ran a command center under Shifa Hospital, Gaza’s largest medical facility, which was crippled by Israeli shelling.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has repeatedly called for a ceasefire and decried the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The UN chief has invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter, a move aimed at formally warning the Security Council of a global threat posed by Israel’s barbarism.

The Red Cross demands Israel adhere to international law.

Meanwhile, the secretary-general of the International Federation of the Red Cross, Jagan Chapagain, says “No words adequately capture the depth of human suffering in Gaza”.

The humanitarian organization has repeatedly appealed for access to Gaza and for civilians to be protected.

“In this conflict, civilians, humanitarian workers are paying the highest price with some losing their lives,” Chapagain wrote on X. “Rules exist to help preserve humanity in the darkest moments, and they desperately need to be.”

The developments come as incessant and indiscriminate bombardments claim the lives of more innocent civilians on day 82 of the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza. The Israeli regime is continuing with its relentless bombardments, killing more innocent women and children.

At least six Palestinians have been killed in the latest air attacks that hit northern Gaza.

The Israeli army has also targeted the Nuseirat, Bureij and Maghazi refugee camps.

In the south, the city of Khan Yunis has been the scene of deadly artillery strikes and air raids, the latest of which killed 20 people.

The Palestinian health ministry says the regime has intensified attacks around the Nasser hospital, raising concerns about the lives of thousands of people taking shelter there.

The death toll has now surpassed 21,100, mostly women and children. Meantime, the World Health Organization has once again denounced the Israeli bloodbath in Gaza and warned about the dire humanitarian situation there.

Source: Press TV