Gaza Herald _The Palestinian Center for Human Rights has condemned the Israeli targeting of a temporary municipal police headquarters in central Gaza City, saying repeated attacks on police personnel are weakening public security institutions and fueling instability across the besieged Strip.
The center said the Israeli strike late Wednesday killed eight police personnel, including two women officers, as well as a young girl who was inside a nearby municipal park. Eighteen other Palestinians were wounded, some critically.
The attack came only hours after Israeli forces detained a police officer and a security employee in southern Gaza.
The rights group said the strike forms part of a repeated pattern of targeting police and security personnel responsible for maintaining public order, while Israeli attacks continue to hit civilians, displaced people’s tents, markets, and other civilian gathering points across Gaza.
According to the center, an Israeli special forces unit accompanied by military dogs entered the Regional Park area southwest of al-Mawasi in Khan Younis at around 1:45 a.m. Wednesday and detained two Palestinians, taking them to an undisclosed location.
The detainees were identified as 46-year-old Sabri Atwa Shehda Abdel Aal, a police officer, and 34-year-old Nashet Mustafa Suleiman Za’rab, an employee of Al-Aqsa Security Company, which provides security and logistical services.
The center said the arrests and repeated attacks on police personnel and facilities are part of a broader pattern that is undermining institutions responsible for maintaining public order at a time when Gaza is facing an increasingly severe security and humanitarian crisis.
Repeated Targeting of Gaza Police
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said it has documented dozens of Israeli attacks targeting police personnel and facilities across Gaza.
Repeatedly striking police officers at police posts or while they are carrying out duties related to maintaining public order raises serious concerns about the targeting of civilian institutions responsible for organizing daily life and maintaining internal security, the center said.
The weakening of these institutions directly affects Palestinians’ ability to access even basic security and essential services. It can also contribute to the spread of lawlessness and deepen internal disputes as the war and the collapse of vital systems continue.
The center noted that the attacks on police have intensified as family disputes have increased in several areas of Gaza. Police officers have continued attempting to intervene, contain conflicts, and prevent violence between families, making their ability to operate increasingly important amid the wider breakdown of public services.
Rights Group Warns of Wider Consequences
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights stressed that police officers carrying out civilian duties related to public security, maintaining order, and organizing daily affairs are protected under international humanitarian law as long as they are not directly participating in hostilities.
The center said attacks on police personnel performing such civilian functions violate fundamental protections under international humanitarian law and emphasized the need to distinguish between officers carrying out civilian duties and individuals directly participating in hostilities.
It called on the international community to take urgent and effective action to halt violations against Palestinian civilians, end attacks on civilian institutions and bodies responsible for internal security, ensure accountability for those responsible for violations, and provide immediate international protection for civilians across Gaza.
