Pakistan has strongly condemned the targeting of Palestinian civilians in Gaza by Israel and the attack on a school sheltering displaced families in the besieged enclave.

“Pakistan strongly deplores the continued targeting of the Palestinian civilians in Gaza by the occupying power,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

The statement said the “latest reprehensible attack against a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza is an example of continued Israeli impunity”.

“The harrowing images being witnessed by the world in the aftermath of the attack that resulted in dozens of deaths, many of them children, should be a wake-up call for the international community. These attacks must end forthwith, and Israel must be held accountable for its heinous crimes.”

Pakistan also strongly condemned the provocative actions by the “Israeli occupying power and illegal settlers”, saying it undermined the “religious, historical and legal status” of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem.

The FO said such actions “have the potential to further escalate an already volatile situation in the region”, calling for “upholding the sanctity and historical status of the holy sites, and preventing Israel from any further provocations”.