Days after she wrote that the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas against Israeli civilians “cannot justify the innocent lives lost” in Gaza, Angelina Jolie has blasted Israel’s dual airstrikes on the Jabalia refugee camp.
The actress and former United Nations refugee agency envoy wrote on Instagram, “This is the deliberate bombing of a trapped population who have nowhere to flee. Gaza has been an open-air prison for nearly two decades and is fast becoming a mass grave.”
She continued, “40% of those killed are innocent children. Whole families are being murdered. While the world watches and with the active support of many governments, millions of Palestinian civilians — children, women, families — are being collectively punished and dehumanized, all while being deprived food, medicine and humanitarian aid against international law.”
“By refusing to demand a humanitarian ceasefire and blocking the U.N. Security Council from imposing one on both parties, world leaders are complicit in these crimes,” Jolie concluded.
Earlier Wednesday, Israel stated that the country’s military carried out the bombing at one of Gaza’s most densely populated places to target Hamas leader Ibrahim Biari. While speaking to CNN, IDF Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said, “This is the tragedy of war. … We’ve been saying for days: ‘Move south, civilians that are not involved with Hamas, please move south.’”
Hamas has denied Biari was at the camp. Israel targeted the camp for a second time on Wednesday.
Before the airstrikes, the camp covered 1.4 kilometers and had a population of more than 110,000 people. The camp was established in 1948 for families who fled during the Arab-Israeli War, which resulted in what many refer to as the Nakba or Palestinian Catastrophe.
In addition to homes, the camp had three schools run by the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. Since the start of the current conflict, those schools have been primarily used as shelters.
On Tuesday, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder said, “Gaza has become a graveyard for thousands of children. It’s a living hell for everyone else.”
