A tragic Israeli airstrike targeted the civil defense headquarters in central Gaza City on Tuesday afternoon, resulting in the martyrdom of firefighter Najeeb Sokkar and his only child, Mohamed, and leaving another firefighter seriously injured, according to Gaza’s civil defense service.

The fatal attack occurred as Sokkar was preparing food for his son at the headquarters. The same strike inflicted severe injuries on another firefighter, further devastating the embattled civil defense community.

This is not the first time the civil defense infrastructure has been targeted. In September, an aerial attack on the same fire station injured four civil defense workers. A similar assault on another civil defense center in the an-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza recently claimed the lives of four employees.

Civil defense services, already stretched thin amid the ongoing Israeli onslaught, play a crucial role in responding to emergencies and saving lives in the war-torn region. Repeated attacks on these facilities severely hamper their operations and exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Calls for accountability and an immediate end to these targeted strikes have grown louder as international bodies continue to push for a ceasefire and the protection of critical civilian infrastructure. (ILKHA)