UNRWA head Pierre Krahenbuhl called on the sides in the fighting in Gaza to respect the sanctity of UN premises in a message that he delivered to the UN Security Council on Thursday.
Krahenbuhl said eight of his colleagues lost their lives in Gaza since the conflict began twenty-four days ago.
"If we are not safe in an UNRWA school we are not safe anywhere," Krahenbuhl said Palestinians in Gaza have told him over the past days.
Krahenbuhl strongly condemned armed groups for putting weapons in UNRWA facilities but said that this did not justify Israeli attacks on the schools.