The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has expressed its outrage after eight medical workers from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) were killed by Israeli forces while on duty in the Gaza Strip. In a statement issued on Sunday, the IFRC condemned the deaths, asking, “When will this stop?”
The bodies of the medics were recovered Sunday, a week after they were killed by Israeli forces who opened fire on ambulances in southern Gaza. Along with the eight medics, six members of Gaza’s civil defense agency and one UN agency employee were found dead. One PRCS ambulance officer remains missing.
Jagan Chapagain, the IFRC Secretary General, expressed his heartbreak over the incident, emphasising that the medics were humanitarians who should have been protected under International Humanitarian Law.
He questioned when the violence targeting civilians, health services, and humanitarians would end, stating, “All parties must stop the killing.”
The deaths mark the deadliest attack on Red Cross and Red Crescent colleagues globally since 2017. The PRCS has now lost 30 staff members since the Israel-Hamas conflict began in October 2023.
