UN refugee agency says 142 employees killed in Gaza since Oct. 7

The UN Palestinian refugee agency said Sunday that 142 employees had been killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.

"In this somber moment, it's hard to wish those celebrating 'Merry Christmas', with ongoing loss, grief and destruction," the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said in a statement.

"Our teams are doing the impossible to help people in need. We mourn the loss of more UNRWA colleagues killed in Gaza, now 142, the majority with their families," it added.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, killing at least 20,424 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring 54,036 others, according to health authorities in the enclave.

Around 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli onslaught has left Gaza in ruins with half of the coastal territory's housing stock damaged or destroyed, and nearly 2 million people displaced within the densely-populated enclave amid shortages of food and clean water.