DayofPal– A CNN investigation, bolstered by forensic analysis of bomb fragments and images, has confirmed Israel’s involvement in the attack on a United Nations guesthouse in Gaza. The attack killed an international UN aid worker and wounded five others.
The targeting of a UN guesthouse in Deir Al-Balah has drawn international condemnation, with the United Nations confirming that one of its international aid workers was killed by an “explosive ordnance”, while five others sustained injuries.
Despite Israeli military denials, weapons specialists who examined the site identified fragments consistent with an M339 Israeli tank projectile, suggesting a direct and deliberate impact on the UN facility.
Jorge Moreira da Silva, head of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), emphasized that the location was well-known to the Israeli army and situated in an isolated area, making it unlikely that the attack was accidental.
He stated that the guesthouse had been hit multiple times over recent days, labeling the assault a violation of international law.
Weapons specialists reviewing CNN footage from the scene identified the remnants to be 120mm Israeli M339 tank projectile, an advanced munition designed for high-impact precision strikes.
Military analyst Trevor Ball, a former U.S. Army explosive ordnance expert, confirmed that the damage to the building was consistent with a direct Israeli tank fire impact.
The Israeli army has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility, stating only that they have “nothing to add at the moment.”
Israel has intensified its assault on Gaza following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire with Hamas, launching renewed ground operations and airstrikes that have claimed the lives of at least 90 Palestinians last night.
On Wednesday, the Israeli ay announced the launch of “targeted ground operation” reoccupying the Netzarim Corridor, a strategic strip that divides Gaza into northern and southern sectors.
The renewed offensive has led to one of the deadliest days of the war, with over 400 Palestinians killed in a single day of airstrikes, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed that Gaza’s civilian population would “pay the full price” unless Hamas released Israeli captives and surrendered control of the territory.
The military campaign, an Israeli official stated, marks a return to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s strategy of military pressure as a means to secure captives releases despite it proves its failure.
As the war resumes, the humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated rapidly. The Civil Defense warned of an imminent famine, exacerbated by Israel’s near-total blockade of humanitarian aid over the past three weeks.
The January ceasefire had briefly allowed vital relief to enter Gaza and facilitated the return of displaced Palestinians to their war-torn homes, but those gains have been reversed by the latest atrocities.
Under the previous truce, Israel withdrew from the Netzarim Corridor, allowing hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians to traverse the strip.
However, in a new directive, Israel has now banned Palestinian movement along the key route between north and south Gaza, further restricting civilian access to aid and medical care.
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