Israeli missile hits Gaza children collecting water, IDF blames malfunction
Gaza
on Sunday, local officials said, in an
Israeli
missile strike which the military said missed its intended target.
The
Israeli military
said it had intended to hit an Islamic Jihad militant in the area but that a malfunction had caused the missile to fall 'dozens of metres from the target'.
'The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved civilians,' it said in a statement, adding that the incident was under review.
The strike hit a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing six children and injuring 17 others, said Ahmed Abu Saifan, an emergency physician at Al-Awda Hospital.
Water shortages in Gaza have worsened sharply in recent weeks, with fuel shortages causing desalination and sanitation facilities to close, making people dependent on collection centres where they can fill up their plastic containers.
[
Israeli airstrikes and shootings kill at least 52 Palestinians in Gaza Strip, hospital officials say
Opens in new window
]
In another attack, Palestinian media reported that a prominent hospital consultant was among 12 people killed by an Israeli strike midmorning on a busy market in Gaza City.
Gaza's health ministry said on Sunday that more than 58,000 people had been killed since the start of the war between Israel and
Hamas
in October 2023, with 139 people added to the death toll over the past 24 hours.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its tally, but says more than half of those killed are women and children.
Talks aimed at securing a ceasefire appeared to be deadlocked, with the two sides divided over the extent of an eventual Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave, Palestinian and Israeli sources said at the weekend.
The indirect talks over a US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire were continuing in Doha, but optimism that surfaced last week of a possible deal has largely faded, with both sides accusing each other of intransigence.
The war began on October 7th, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages into Gaza. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages there are believed to still be alive.
Israel's campaign against Hamas has displaced almost the entire population of more than two million people, but Gazans say nowhere is safe in the coastal enclave.
Early on Sunday morning, a missile hit a house in Gaza City where a family had moved to after receiving an evacuation order from their home in the southern outskirts.
'My aunt, her husband and the children, are gone. What is the fault of the children who died in an ugly bloody massacre at dawn?' said Anas Matar, standing in the rubble of the building.
'They came here, and they were hit. There is no safe place in Gaza,' he said. – Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Harrowing viral pic of starving Gaza boy ‘was HIJACKED' by Hamas to create ‘fake news', campaigners say
A PHOTO seemingly showing a starving boy in Gaza was "hijacked" by Hamas to create "fake news", it was claimed last night. The picture of Muhammad al-Matouq in his mum's arms went viral last week - amid claims Israel was Advertisement 6 Muhammad Zakariya Ayyoub al-Matouq, a 1.5-year-old child in Gaza City, Gaza Credit: Getty 6 Campaigners say he was already suffering genetic disorders Credit: Getty 6 He was said to have dropped from 9 to 6 kilograms Credit: Getty But campaigners say he was already suffering genetic disorders and his mum and brother looked healthy in the picture. Pro-Israel investigative journalist David Collier said: "This is not the face of famine. It is the face of a medically vulnerable child whose tragic situation was hijacked and weaponised." He accused news outlets who used the image of benefiting Hamas and creating "fake news ". On Monday, the Gaza health ministry said at least 14 people had died in the past 24 hours of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the war's death toll from hunger to 147, including 89 children. Advertisement read more news Israel announced a The Israeli Defence Force said it would halt operations in Muwasi, Deir al-Balah and Gaza City from 10am to 8pm. It said it will set up corridors to help aid agencies deliver food and supplies. Within hours, Jordanian and Emirati planes had air-dropped 25 tonnes of aid. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun The World Food Programme (WFP) said 60 trucks of aid had been dispatched - but this amount fell short of Gaza's needs. WFP Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa , and Eastern Europe, Samer AbdelJaber said: "Sixty is definitely not enough. So our target at the moment, every day is to get 100 trucks into Gaza." Israel announces 'tactical pause' in fighting in parts of Gaza as IDF sets up 'designated humanitarian corridors' The Programme explained how almost 470,000 people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions, with 90,000 women and children in need of specialist nutrition treatments. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said only a ceasefire would alleviate the needs of those 'desperately suffering'. Advertisement And Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN's Palestinian refugee agency, said the latest aid drops would not solve food shortages in Gaza. Last week, more than 100 aid agencies warned that mass starvation was spreading across the Palestinian enclave. The military also said Saturday that it had connected a power line to a desalination plant, expected to supply daily water needs for about 900,000 Gazan people. Israel's foreign ministry said the military would "apply a 'humanitarian pause' in civilian centres and in humanitarian corridors" on Sunday morning. Advertisement The announcement came after indirect ceasefire talks in Doha between Israel and Hamas were broken off with no deal in sight. The UN said that humanitarian pauses in Gaza would allow "the scale up of humanitarian assistance". The Israeli military stressed that despite the humanitarian steps , "combat operations have not ceased" in the Gaza Strip. Israel has previously . Advertisement 6 Palestinians, who lost their relatives in Israeli attacks, mourn as the deceased are being brought to Nasser Hospital in Gaza's Khan Yunis Credit: Getty 6 Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City Credit: Reuters 6 Trucks carrying aid enter Gaza through the Rafah border crossing today Credit: Getty Advertisement
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
More aid needed to tackle famine-like conditions in Gaza, says UN
A long-term steady supply of aid is needed to counter the worsening hunger crisis in Gaza , UN agencies said on Monday after mounting pressure prompted Israel to ease restrictions in the Palestinian enclave. Israel carried out an air drop and announced a series of measures over the weekend, including daily humanitarian pauses in three areas of Gaza and new safe corridors for aid convoys, after images of starving children alarmed the world. On Monday, the Gaza health ministry said at least 14 people had died in the past 24 hours of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the war's death toll from hunger to 147, including 89 children, most in the last few weeks. The World Food Programme (WFP) said 60 trucks of aid had been dispatched but that this amount fell short of Gaza's needs. READ MORE 'Sixty is definitely not enough. So our target at the moment, every day is to get 100 trucks into Gaza,' WFP regional director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe, Samer AbdelJaber, told Reuters. The WFP said that almost 470,000 people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions, with 90,000 women and children in need of specialist nutrition treatments. 'I cannot say that in a week we will be able to really avert the risks. It has to be something continuous and scalable,' Mr AbdelJaber said. Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said aid supply would be kept up whether Israel was negotiating a ceasefire or fighting in Gaza. The WFP said it has 170,000 metric tons of food in the region, outside Gaza, which would be enough to feed the whole population for the next three months if it gets the clearance to bring into the enclave. Cogat, the Israeli military aid co-ordination agency, said that over 120 trucks were distributed in Gaza on Sunday by the UN and international organisations. But some of those trucks that made it into Gaza were seized by desperate Palestinians, and some by armed looters, witnesses said. 'Currently aid comes for the strong who can race ahead, who can push others and grab a box or a sack of flour. That chaos must be stopped and protection for those trucks must be allowed,' said Emad (58), who used to own a wood factory in Gaza City. More aid was expected to flow in on Monday. Qatar said in a statement it had sent 49 trucks that arrived in Egypt en route for Gaza. Jordan and the United Arab Emirates airdropped supplies into Gaza. Israel cut off aid to Gaza from the start of March in what it said was a means to pressure Hamas into giving up dozens of hostages it still holds, and reopened aid with new restrictions in May. Israel says it abides by international law but must prevent aid from being diverted by militants, and blames Hamas for the suffering of Gaza's people. 'Israel is presented as though we are applying a campaign of starvation in Gaza. What a bald-faced lie. There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza,' Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday. He added that with the newly announced measures, it was up to the UN to deliver the aid. United Nations aid chief Tom Fletcher said on Sunday that some movement restrictions appeared to have been eased by Israel. A senior WFP official said on Sunday that the agency needs quick approvals by Israel for its trucks to move into Gaza if it is to take advantage of the humanitarian pauses in fighting. The war began on October 7th, 2023, when Hamas-led fighters stormed southern Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, Israel's offensive has killed nearly 60,000 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to Gaza health officials, reduced much of the enclave to ruins, and displaced nearly the entire population of more than two million. Indirect ceasefire talks in Doha between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas have broken off with no deal in sight. – Reuters
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
A father in Gaza: Our children are dying as the world watches. We don't want your pity
Mass starvation is now in Gaza . It is here. It is deadly. And it is getting worse by the day. Exactly two months since the Israeli government-controlled Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operating, more than 100 organisations including ActionAid published a letter sounding the alarm on hunger, urging governments to act. We are desperate for the world to listen. Massacres at the GHF food distribution sites in Gaza are occurring almost daily, with more than 1,000 starving people desperate for food killed to date. Thousands more have been injured. This is on top of the fact that nearly two million exhausted Palestinians have been forcibly displaced by Israel, with the most recent mass displacement order issued on July 20th, confining Palestinians to less than 12 per cent of Gaza. These conditions are impossible. READ MORE The starvation of civilians as a method of warfare is a war crime. In warehouses just outside Gaza, and even within Gaza itself, tons of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items and fuel sit untouched with humanitarian organisations blocked from accessing or delivering them. The government of Israel's restrictions, delays and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation and death. Illnesses such as acute watery diarrhoea are spreading, markets are empty, waste is piling up and adults are collapsing on the streets from hunger and dehydration. Distributions in Gaza average just 28 trucks a day, far from enough for more than two million people, many of whom have gone weeks without assistance. As the letter from more than 100 organisations stated, the UN-led humanitarian system has not failed, it has been prevented from functioning. In my home city of Deir al-Balah in northern Gaza, where I am currently displaced with my family and working as a humanitarian worker for ActionAid Palestine, starving children are everywhere, sunken-eyed and limp in their mothers' arms, their skin hanging loosely on skeletal frames. Older children with limbs as thin as sticks walk around in a daze, eyes dull, too tired to play and too hungry to cry, their bodies failing from lack of food. [ The beaches here in Israel are full. Just an hour's drive away Palestinians are starving Opens in new window ] These children are dying in plain sight with heartbreaking images of emaciated bodies dominating newspapers and screens, telling the true story of what is happening in Gaza. And the world is watching. But not acting. I write this not only as a humanitarian worker, but as a father of three children in Gaza witnessing a catastrophe unfold before my eyes. A catastrophe not just measured in shattered buildings and bombs, but in the slow, agonising deaths of the population – especially children – from hunger and thirst. More than 90 per cent of Gaza's people are now facing either crisis-level or catastrophic levels of food insecurity, according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report. That is nearly two million people – many of them children – who have run out of ways to feed themselves. One hundred and thirteen people have died from starvation since October 2023, and 81 of those are children. What we are seeing here is not a famine warning. It is famine, plain and simple. And it is claiming lives. Every day I see the heartbreaking consequences. Not just children with protruding ribs and swollen bellies, but parents who haven't eaten for days. People collapsing, not from injury, but from hunger. Malnutrition has become as deadly as the bombs. In displacement camps, families count themselves lucky if they get to eat one meal a day if they can find it. Fresh produce is virtually non-existent. A kilo of tomatoes that once cost $1 now sells for up to $30, if you can even find them. Shelves are bare, and the aid that trickles in is a mere drop in an ocean of desperate need. For newborns and infants, the situation is even more horrifying. Baby formula is almost impossible to find. When it does appear, it's often expired, or costs more than families can afford. In the absence of formula, mothers are mixing sugar and flour into water just to keep their babies alive. This puts their tiny bodies at enormous risk of illness and long-term damage. But what choice do these parents have? As a father, I am responsible for my children's needs, but it's hard to secure one meal per day for my family. As a humanitarian worker, I am also trying to help local communities and our people in Gaza, delivering what aid is available. But there is nothing much to be given to the people. Whatever is available is a drop in the ocean. People are no longer afraid of air strikes, they are afraid of starvation. I have spoken to neighbours who say they would rather die quickly in a bombing than suffer this slow, grinding hunger. Despite the global headlines, despite the footage of skeletal children and mothers crying over the tiny bodies of their babies, the world has failed to stop this devastation. World leaders offer words. Resolutions are passed and appeals are made. But still, the bombs fall, and the borders stay largely shut and famine deepens. And yet, this can be stopped. We are grateful to the Irish people for their support and the recognition of Palestine as a state. But governments must stop waiting for permission to act. We cannot continue to hope that current arrangements will work. [ I showed my friends in Israel this photo of a starving baby in Gaza and asked them if they knew Opens in new window ] It is time for them to take decisive action: demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire; lift all bureaucratic and administrative restrictions; open all land crossings; reject military-controlled aid distribution models; restore a principled, UN-led humanitarian response and continue to fund impartial humanitarian organisations. States must also pursue concrete measures to end the siege, such as halting the transfer of weapons and ammunition. The airdrops announced by the Israeli government over the weekend are a totally inadequate response to this crisis, and amount to nothing more than an attempt to whitewash a policy of deliberate starvation. This type of piecemeal arrangement cannot replace the legal and moral obligations by states to protect Palestinian civilians and ensure meaningful access to desperately needed aid. The lack of action is sickening. What will it take? History will ask what the world did while children in Gaza starved. I am writing this in the hope that my words will reach those with the power to make this nightmare stop. The people of Gaza do not need pity. We need action. We need food, medicine, clean water. We need the bombs to stop and the siege to end. We need borders to open to allow for humanitarian aid. We need the world to finally say 'enough'. Alaa Abu Samara is Gaza emergency response manager for ActionAid Palestine
