United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres joined in the condemnation of the attack on a UN-run school in the Gaza Strip that killed at least 40 people.

“It’s just another horrific example of the price that civilians are paying, that Palestinian men, women and children who are just trying to survive [are paying],” Guterres’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

“Of course, he condemns this attack. There will need to be accountability for everything that has happened in Gaza.”

Israel’s military confirmed its fighter jets targeted an UNRWA school in the area, claiming they were targeting a Hamas compound.

“You can listen to what others are saying and you could report that. You can report what I’m saying and you make your own analysis. What I can tell you is that a large number of civilians were killed, a number of children were killed as well.”

The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, says the attack on the  school in the Nuseirat refugee camp “must be independently investigated, in line with the last ICJ [International Court of Justice] order”.

“Reports coming from Gaza time and again show that violence and suffering are still the only reality for hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians,” he said on X. “An enduring ceasefire is the only way forward to protect civilians and get to the immediate release of all hostages.”

South Africa filed a case accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza at the ICJ in December. The UN’s top court has ordered Israel to halt its attacks and allow aid to enter the besieged territory, something Israel has ignored.