Israeli troops opened fire toward crowds of Palestinians seeking food from distribution hubs run by a US- and Israeli-backed group in southern Gaza, killing at least 32 people, according to witnesses and hospital officials.
The shootings occurred near hubs operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which launched operations in May.
The US and Israel seek to replace the traditional UN-led aid distribution system in Gaza.
Asserting that Hamas militants siphon off supplies. The UN denies the allegation.
While GHF says it has distributed millions of meals to hungry Palestinians, local health officials and witnesses say Israeli army fire has killed hundreds of people as they try to reach the hubs.
GHF’s four sites are in military-controlled zones.
Israel’s army, which isn’t at the sites but secures them from a distance, that it fired warning shots near Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah.
After a group of suspects approached troops and ignored calls to keep their distance.
GHF said that there were no incidents at or near its sites and added, “we have repeatedly warned aid seekers not to travel to our sites overnight and early morning hours.”
Most of deaths occurred as Palestinians massed around 3 kilometers from a GHF aid distribution center near the southern city of Khan Younis.
Gaza civil defence agency said that Israeli fire killed 32 people and wounded more than 100 near two aid centres.
Deaths of people waiting for handouts in huge crowds near food points in Gaza have become a regular occurrence, with the territory’s authorities frequently blaming Israeli fire.
But the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has replaced UN agencies as the main distributor of aid in the territory.
Civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said the deaths happened near a site southwest of Khan Yunis and another centre northwest of Rafah, both in southern Gaza, attributing the fatalities to “Israeli gunfire”.
One witness said he headed to the Al-Tina area of Khan Yunis before dawn with five of his relatives to try to get food when “Israeli soldiers” started shooting.
“My relatives and I were unable to get anything,” Abdul Aziz Abed, 37, “Every day I go there and all we get is bullets and exhaustion instead of food.”
