Israeli forces target UN agency in Gaza: Rights body

Reporting on Friday, the Geneva-based Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said Israeli forces had arrested UNICEF staff member Raed al-Afifi, 45, at the Kerem Shalom crossing while he was carrying out official duties with prior coordination.

Israeli authorities have yet to provide any information regarding his detention or whereabouts, the body added.

A day before the arrest, the Israeli army had ordered UNICEF to withdraw its aid convoys and supplies from the same crossing and subsequently blocked the entry of medical shipments destined for hospitals in northern Gaza, Euro-Med added.

According to the organization, the supplies included vaccines for newborns and nutritional supplements for children.

The move has further disrupted humanitarian operations in the coastal sliver, where UNICEF plays a crucial role in health, education, child protection, and infrastructure support for civilians caught in the ongoing crisis.

The report said the targeting of UNICEF fits a broader Israeli strategy aimed at restricting the presence of UN and international relief agencies that have documented widespread violations against Palestinian civilians throughout the conflict.

Humanitarian groups warn that these measures are designed to cut off essential services and eliminate international oversight of the worsening conditions in Gaza.

The developments have prompted renewed calls for the United Nations and the international community to act urgently to ensure the protection of aid workers, facilitate unimpeded humanitarian access, and stop what rights advocates denounce as the regime’s deliberate effort to starve Gaza’s population and silence global witnesses to its actions.