UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said on Thursday that its rehabilitation center for the visually impaired in Gaza City had been completely destroyed by Israeli forces.
Earlier in the day, UNRWA said that the Israeli military carried out operations at the center from February 7 to 10, excavating its premises and setting fire to rooms.
"Nothing remains of UNRWA's Rehabilitation Centre for Visually Impaired. This centre was available to all visually impaired children across the Gaza Strip & provided braille machines, canes, visual aids + access to recreational activities including arts, sports & music," the organization wrote on X.
The post is accompanied by three photographs of destroyed and burned buildings.
On October 7, 2023, Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. As a result, over 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages.
On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.