UN 'horrifed' by destruction
2006-07-22 18:00
Gaza City - The head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Karen Abu Zeid, said on Saturday that she was "a bit horrified" by the extent of the destruction caused by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip.
"I'm a bit horrified by it," she said in a visit to the deserted Maghazi refugee camp.
The camp was hard-hit by an Israeli incursion, launched on Wednesday as part of a wider Israeli operation begun in late June.
The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) provides work, food and funds for hundreds of thousands of refugees living in the coastal Palestinian territory.
"We're horrified following the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) for the past week ... to see what the destruction is from what they've done," she told reporters.
"We're pretty depressed, we're pretty upset. Sixteen people were killed here in Maghazi over the past days, 125 wounded, there are 80 families that are now without houses.
"So many people will be affected for the next months and years to come ...
"We don't quite understand why every economic venture has to be destroyed.
"The main economic backbone of Gaza, bit by bit, is being dismantled or destroyed. I think we've gone back many years."
At least 106 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier have been killed in the territory since Israel launched its offensive.
The Israeli army wants to retrieve a missing soldier and stop Palestinian fighters firing rockets into Israel from Gaza.