EU chief Ursula von der Leyen has denounced as “abhorrent” Israel’s deadly wave of strikes on civilian facilities in Gaza, including a school, during a call with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, AFP reports.

“The expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza targeting civilian infrastructure, among them a school that served as a shelter for displaced Palestinian families, killing civilians, including children, is abhorrent,” von der Leyen said, according to an EU readout of the call.

“The European Commission has always supported — and will continue to support — Israel’s right to security and self-defence,” she said.

“But this escalation and disproportionate use of force against civilians cannot be justified under humanitarian and international law,” von der Leyen warned.