At least 33 Palestinian Red Crescent officials killed in Gaza since October

At least 33 Red Crescent employees have been killed in Gaza since Israel started its brutal war on the besieged enclave nearly eight months ago.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) wrote on X: “Scenes from the funeral of our colleague, Mohammed Jihad Abed, an employee in the Disaster Risk Management Department, who was killed when occupation forces bombed his home last night in Rafah.”

“This brings the total number of PRCS members killed since the beginning of the aggression on Gaza to 33, including 19 who were killed while performing their humanitarian duties,” it added.

On May 29, two paramedics affiliated with the Palestinian Red Crescent were killed in an Israeli army attack on an ambulance en route to evacuate Palestinians at the Abu al-Said Junction in Tel al-Sultan in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

The Palestinian Red Crescent stressed that Israel "intentionally targeted healthcare workers."

Israel's deadly war

Israel has pounded Gaza in retaliation for an October 7 operation by Hamas.

The Israeli army has attacked and raided 160 healthcare facilities in Gaza, resulting in the closure of 55 health centres and 33 hospitals.

Nearly 36,400 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel began its onslaught nearly eight months ago. The majority of those killed have been women and children, with more than 82,400 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid Israel's crippling blockade o f food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war.