GAZA, (PIC)
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has strongly denounced the Israeli killing of two contracted Palestinian workers delivering clean water to families in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement issued on Friday, the agency warned that the incident threatens vital humanitarian operations supplying clean water to hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza.
The agency said it is “outraged by the killing of two drivers of trucks contracted by UNICEF to provide clean water to families in the Gaza Strip.”
The two men were killed by Israeli gunfire early Friday at the Mansoura water filling point in northern Gaza, in an incident that also left two others injured.
UNICEF said the Israeli attack occurred during routine water trucking operations, with no changes in movement or procedures.
The Mansoura site is currently the only operational truck filling point for the Mekorot water supply line serving Gaza City. It is used multiple times daily by UNICEF and humanitarian partners to sustain critical water deliveries to large segments of the population, including children.
Following the incident, UNICEF instructed its contractors to suspend on-site activities until security conditions improve.
The agency called on Israeli authorities to “immediately investigate this incident, and ensure full accountability,” stressing that “humanitarian workers, essential service providers, and civilian infrastructure, including critical water facilities, must never be targeted.”
“The protection of civilians and those delivering life-saving assistance is an obligation under international humanitarian law,” its statement added.
