GAZA CITY, Palestine

Horrors continue unabated for the 15th month in a row amid a brutal Israeli war on the enclave, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Tuesday.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that 258 UN agency staff members have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7, 2023.

“Nearly 650 incidents against UNRWA buildings and facilities were recorded,” he added in a statement.

The UN official said at least 745 people were killed in UNRWA shelters while seeking UN protection and more than 2,200 others injured.

“Over two thirds of the UNRWA buildings are now damaged or destroyed. The vast majority were used as schools for children before the war,” he added.

“Fifteen months on the war in Gaza, horrors continue unabated under the world’s watch,” Lazzarini said.

The UNRWA chief said at least 20 agency staff are currently held in Israeli detention centers.

“Those previously released have described systematic mistreatment, humiliation and torture,” he added.

Lazzarini called for independent investigations into “the systematic disregard for the protection of humanitarian workers, premises and operations."

"This cannot become the new standard and impunity cannot become the new norm," he added.

The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed over 45,500 victims, mostly women and children, since a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023 despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara