JEDDAH: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Media Observatory on Israeli Crimes against Palestinians on Wednesday reported an increase in Israeli aggression against Palestinians, documenting 2,725 violations between 1 and 7 April 2025.
The most prominent Israeli aggression, cited in the OIC report, was the killing of 31 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in the bombing of the “Dar Al-Arqam” school for displaced people in the Al-Tuffah neighbourhood.
The observatory reported the killing of journalists, and a video surfaced showing the field execution of 14 individuals, including a UN employee.
Israeli forces also targeted a clinic run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), resulting in the deaths of 55 Palestinians, mostly women and children. Additionally, settlers set fire to a piece of UNRWA land in Al-Quds.
These events took place amid an escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with the World Food Programme (WFP) forced to shut down bakeries due to aid shortages caused by the continued closure of aid crossings. Meanwhile, Israel intensified its efforts to encircle Rafah, demolishing homes and expanding buffer zones, similar to actions taken in northern Gaza as part of displacement plans. Israel also declared control over the Morag Corridor as part of a larger strategic move.
The observatory recorded 400 Palestinian deaths and 1,112 injuries in the first week of April, bringing the total death toll since October 7, 2023, to over 51,700, with over 122,175 wounded during the same period.
Meanwhile, in the West Bank, Israeli forces carried out 184 raids, arrested 179 Palestinians, and demolished over eight homes. Infrastructure damage was also reported.
The abuse of Palestinian children in the West Bank also continued, with two children killed, three others injured by Israeli forces, and nine individuals arrested. Mosques were also targeted, as extremists stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque.
UK MPs back call for inquiry into Gaza conflict
A group of MPs in the UK has urged the government to initiate an inquiry similar to the one conducted after the Iraq war, investigating Britain’s involvement in the Gaza conflict, Sky News reported on Wednesday.
The group of 37 MPs includes 10 members from the ruling Labour Party, who have endorsed a letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, written by Jeremy Corbyn, the party’s former leader.
Corbyn demanded a “comprehensive inquiry with legal power to establish the truth” about the war, which has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
