A senior Red Cross official in Gaza described the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Friday, revealing devastating scenes in the Gaza Strip.
The strike heavily impacted the Red Cross compound located just south of a humanitarian zone designated by the Israeli military, an area understood by all conflicting parties.
"Many of the injured were transported by ambulance to a close-by Red Cross field hospital for urgent medical care but not all survived their injuries.
Schomburg noted that no Red Cross staff members were killed, although two children of staff members were injured and required medical attention.Around the Red Cross compound, Schomburg recounted the harrowing scene.
"The Israel Defense Forces issued a statement on Saturday saying an initial inquiry "found there was no direct attack carried out by the IDF against a Red Cross facility."
A senior Red Cross official in Gaza described the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Friday, revealing devastating scenes in the Gaza Strip. William Schomburg , the local chief for the International Committee of the Red Cross ( ICRC ), recounted the incident via video link to reporters in Geneva, detailing the destruction and the subsequent influx of wounded individuals seeking aid.The explosions occurred at around 3.30 pm on the compound's walls, causing extensive damage and resulting in 22 deaths, reported AFP.Schomburg vividly described the situation, saying, "There were piles of dead bodies, blood everywhere." The strike heavily impacted the Red Cross compound located just south of a humanitarian zone designated by the Israeli military, an area understood by all conflicting parties."All of our buildings are very well known to all parties to the conflict," said Schomburg.Avoiding speculation on who was responsible for the shelling, Schomburg said, "We're not here to lay blame. But of course, this incident is one of several near misses that we have had... and we as the ICRC cannot operate like this."Many of the injured were transported by ambulance to a close-by Red Cross field hospital for urgent medical care but not all survived their injuries. Schomburg noted that no Red Cross staff members were killed, although two children of staff members were injured and required medical attention.Around the Red Cross compound, Schomburg recounted the harrowing scene. "Around the compound on the street, there were pools of blood, there were bodies strewn across the ground. We literally found body parts scattered in different areas, including within the compound. Frankly, it's like nothing I've ever seen before. The scale of the suffering in such a short period of time was really very shocking for the team."The Israel Defense Forces issued a statement on Saturday saying an initial inquiry "found there was no direct attack carried out by the IDF against a Red Cross facility." The investigation continues, and findings will be shared with international partners.Schomburg described the chaos and fear among the people near the compound, many of whom are families of Red Cross staff living in tents. He called it a "miracle" that none were seriously injured. He described an “overwhelming sense of fear amongst people that were clearly panicked and very desperate with nowhere to go."The attack comes amid escalated Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip following the October 7 attack by Hamas, which led to the deaths of 1,194 people, predominantly civilians, as reported by AFP. Hamas captured hostages, with 116 remaining in Gaza, though the Israeli army indicates 41 have since died. Israel's counteroffensive has resulted in at least 37,551 deaths, also mainly civilians, according to Gaza's health ministry.
