UNRWA Commissioner-General, Gaza: devastating to confirm the deaths of two additional UNRWA colleagues

31 March 2025

From Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA Commissioner-General as posted on his official X account (previously known as Twitter)

Gaza: devastating to confirm the deaths of two additional UNRWA colleagues and 8 Palestinian Red Crescent aid workers and first responders.

This brings the death toll of aid workers killed to 408 among them more than 280 UNRWA staff since the war began 1.5 years ago.

The body of our colleague killed in Rafah was retrieved yesterday, together with the aid workers from Palestine RCS all of them discarded in shallow graves – a profound violation of human dignity.

These were humanitarian workers.

Whether on the front line, or in their homes with their families, civilians must be protected at all time.

Targeting or endangering emergency responders, journalists or humanitarian workers is a flagrant and severe disregard of international law.

In Gaza, these killings have become routine.

This cannot become the new norm.

There must be accountability.

International humanitarian law applies to all, without exception.