'Massacre of civilians': 27 killed and over 160 injured in aid distribution attack as Gaza's health system teeters on collapse
A plume of smoke erupts as vehicles move along a road used by displaced people fleeing from Khan Yunis westwards to al-Mawasi in the southern Gaza Strip after the Israeli military had issued an evacuation order the previous day.
The Ministry described the attack as a "massacre of citizens waiting for aid' and stated that many of the injured remain in critical condition.
Initial reports indicated that there were 24 fatalities and dozens of injuries, but the number rose as more victims arrived at overwhelmed and heavily under-resourced hospitals.
A deadly Israeli strike on Palestinians awaiting humanitarian aid in the Al-Alam distribution zone in Rafah Governorate has left at least 27 people dead and over 161 wounded, many critically, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said in a statement released on Tuesday.
The strike came amid escalating attacks and ongoing evacuations ordered by the Israeli military. These attacks are directly impacting Gaza's few remaining health facilities.
Of particular concern is the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis, which is the last operational hospital in southern Gaza that provides specialised services.
'Dozens of patients and wounded in intensive care, operating rooms, emergency units, and neonatal wards face certain death if the complex goes out of service,' warned the Health Ministry.
Health System on the Brink
Gaza's medical infrastructure is nearing total collapse. According to the Ministry, operating rooms, ICUs, and ERs are overwhelmed by the influx of casualties.
Additionally, there is a severe shortage of life-saving medicines, surgical supplies, and diagnostic equipment.
Generators are running on minimal fuel, risking total blackouts in critical care areas.
Starvation and Malnutrition
As the health system is on the brink of collapse and attacks continue, Israel's blockade threatens the entire population of the Gaza Strip with famine, global hunger monitor Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) initiative has warned in a report.
The report stated the Gaza Strip 'is still confronted with a critical risk of famine' after over a year and a half of war, with the vast majority of its approximately 2.1 million people at severe risk.
In March, the Israeli military halted the entry of food, water, medicine and all other life-saving supplies into Gaza. It is June and the blockade continues with no sign of stopping or a ceasefire.
The report added that approximately 93 percent of Gaza's population is experiencing acute food shortages.
Human Rights Watch reported last month that children in Gaza have been dying from starvation-related complications since the Israeli government began using starvation as a weapon of war, which it deemed a war crime.
Doctors and families in Gaza described children, as well as pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, suffering from severe malnutrition and dehydration, and hospitals ill-equipped to treat them.
To make matters worse, food prices in Gaza are soaring excessively.
The IPC report points to a 3,000 percent increase in the price of wheat flour since February in Deir el-Balah in central Gaza and Khan Younis in the south.
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