GENEVA: The medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) voiced sorrow and outrage following the death on Sunday of a colleague fatally hit in Gaza.
Abed El Hameed Qaradaya, 43, succumbed to shrapnel injuries sustained in the attack which happened on Thursday and which had killed MSF colleague Omar Hayek and injured several others.
MSF said the attack was carried out by Israeli forces.
It said its staff were waiting for a bus to the charity’s field hospital at the time, and were all were wearing MSF vests.
El Hameed is the 15th MSF staff member killed in the near two-year conflict, and the third in less than 20 days.
“His loss is immense and has a tragic impact on his loved ones, MSF and the health system in Gaza,” the Geneva-based NGO said in a statement.
“For 18 years, Abed El Hameed was a cornerstone of MSF’s physiotherapy department in Gaza. He was a unique and invaluable specialist in both physiotherapy and occupational therapy.
“Abed was dedicated not only to his patients’ physical recovery but also to restoring their hope and sense of dignity.”
MSF said he innovated and adapted tools, and was the driving force behind opening a 3D physiotherapy department.
“We are profoundly grieved and outraged by the loss of our colleagues — a stark reminder of the pattern of complete disregard for civilian lives and human dignity,” it said.
The United Nations and rights groups have frequently condemned the high death toll of humanitarians and aid workers in the Palestinian territory, as Israel pursues its offensive against the Islamist group Hamas.
MSF outraged by death of 15th colleague in Gaza
https://arab.news/pwxus
MSF outraged by death of 15th colleague in Gaza
- Abed El Hameed Qaradaya, 43, succumbed to shrapnel injuries sustained in the attack which happened on Thursday
- MSF said the attack was carried out by Israeli forces
UN chief expresses deep concern over escalating Iran-US tensions
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for diplomatic engagement to resolve differences between the United States and Iran amid a surge in military activities and rhetoric across the Middle East, his spokesperson said on Friday.
“We are very concerned about the heightened rhetoric we’re seeing around the region by the heightened military activities, war games or just military, increased military, naval presence in the region. And we encourage both the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran to continue to engage in diplomacy in order to settle the differences,” said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesperson for UN secretary-general.
The call for restraint follows a formal letter delivered on Thursday by Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s permanent representative to the UN, addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council. Iravani emphasized that Iran is prepared to exercise its inherent right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, promising a decisive and proportionate response to any military aggression.
Iravani further warned that in such a scenario, all bases, facilities, and assets belonging to hostile forces in the Middle East would constitute legitimate targets for Iranian defensive measures. The envoy added that the United States would bear full and direct responsibility for any unforeseen and uncontrollable consequences resulting from further provocations.
