WANA (May 13) – The spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the brutal attacks by the Israeli regime on Palestinian refugee camps and shelters in Jabalia and Khan Younis, which resulted in the martyrdom and injury of dozens of innocent Palestinians, including several infants.

 

In the early hours of Tuesday, Esmaeil Baghaei described the extensive and unprecedented human rights and humanitarian violations in the occupied Palestinian territories as “a blatant affront to the fundamental principles of international law.”

 

He emphasized the legal and moral responsibility of all governments, and by extension the United Nations, to prevent genocide and ensure adherence to humanitarian law. He also stressed the urgent need to expedite proceedings at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court against the Israeli regime and its officials for committing war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity.

 

The spokesperson expressed solidarity with the oppressed Palestinian people and called on the international community and regional countries to take effective action to immediately halt Israel’s criminal assaults, ensure rapid delivery of food and medicine to Gaza, hold the perpetrators accountable, ensure the complete withdrawal of occupying forces from Gaza, and devise a strategy to counter Israeli aggression in other regional countries, including Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen.

 

Just hours earlier, Israeli regime warplanes had carried out heavy airstrikes in Beit Hanoun, in the northern Gaza Strip.

 

Artillery shelling by the Israeli army targeted the Education Directorate in eastern Gaza, which was sheltering displaced persons near Al-Zahra School in the Al-Daraj neighborhood. As a result, one woman was killed and several others injured.

 

Local sources reported that the Israeli army had also shelled eastern areas of Gaza City.

 

These renewed attacks on Gaza came despite a temporary reduction in Israeli military operations earlier that day to facilitate the release of Alexander, an Israeli-American captive.

 

According to reports, since Tuesday morning, 36 Palestinians—including women and children—have been killed in various areas of Gaza due to Israeli airstrikes.

 

Initial statistics show that in Jabalia al-Balad, northern Gaza, 16 Palestinians, including women and children, were killed when the “Fatemeh bint Asad” school, which was housing refugees, was targeted.

 

The Israeli regime began its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, with two main objectives: eliminating Hamas and retrieving Israeli captives. However, it failed to achieve these goals and was forced to negotiate a prisoner exchange with Hamas.

 

A ceasefire agreement was reached between Hamas and Israel on January 19, 2025, which led to the exchange of some captives. However, Israel later refused to engage in the second phase of negotiations. On the morning of Tuesday, March 18, 2025, the Israeli regime resumed its military aggression in violation of the ceasefire terms, prompting resistance fighters to retaliate with multiple operations.