At least 67 killed while waiting for aid in Gaza, officials say
The latest deaths occurred in al Sudaniya in northern Gaza, the director of the al Shifa hospital said.
Four hospitals in the area reported multiple casualties being brought in, including 45 fatalities at al Shifa.
In recent weeks hundreds of Palestinians have been killed while waiting for food and aid.
On Saturday Israeli troops were accused of killing at least 32 people .
It comes as the Israeli military issued evacuation orders on Sunday in areas of central Gaza packed withdisplaced Palestinians where it hasn't operated so far in its war with Hamas.
The military evacuation demand, which could signal an imminent attack on neighbourhoods in Deir al Balah, alarmed the families of Israeli hostages, who fear their relatives are being held there.
Meanwhile, Pope Leo called for an end to the "barbarity of war" on Sunday as he spoke of his profound pain over an Israeli strike on the only Catholic church in Gaza on Thursday.
The attack killed three people and wounded 10, including the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, who developed a close friendship with the late Pope Francis, and was back at the Holy Family Catholic Church for Mass on Sunday.
The strike drew condemnation from the pope and US President Donald Trump, and prompted statements of regret from Israel, which said it was an accident.
Israel and Hamas have been holding ceasefire talks in Qatar, but international mediators say there have been no breakthroughs.
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UPI
15 minutes ago
- UPI
At least 3 killed as Israel launches ground offensive in central Gaza
Palestinian Civil Defense personnel work in Gaza city work to rescue people from a building razed by Israeli shelling on Saturday. Photo by Palestinian Civil Defense/UPI | License Photo July 21 (UPI) -- At least three people were killed Monday as Israel launched a fresh air and ground offensive in Gaza, attacking the central area of the enclave for the first time, where tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have been sheltering. The casualties came after Israeli forces shelled Deir al-Balah and the Bureij refugee camp. They were among 17 people killed across the strip, including in the Al Mawasi area west of Khan Younis and Jabalia in the north. With aircraft and artillery providing covering fire, tanks, armored vehicles and infantry advanced into Deir al-Balah from the Kisufim checkpoint on the Gaza-Israel boundary early Monday. Giving warning of the offensive on an area it said it had not previously targeted, the Israel Defense Forces earlier ordered Palestinians to "immediately evacuate south toward Al Mawasi "for your safety." "To all those present in the southwestern area of Deir al-Balah, in blocks 130, 132-134, 136-139, 2351, including those inside the tents located in the area, The Defense Army continues to operate with great force to destroy the enemy's capabilities and terrorist infrastructure in the area, as it expands its activities in this region to operate in an area it has not operated in before," IDF spokesman Adraee Avichay wrote in a post on X. While most of Gaza is in complete ruins, Deir al-Balah has seen a massive influx of displaced people, drawn by the relative safety and still functioning infrastructure and services, which in turn has made it a hub of operations for the U.N. and other agencies. The IDF, for its part, has until now avoided attacks of any significance for fear of harming hostages who are believed to be held by Hamas in the area. The United Nations' humanitarian affairs office condemned the order for at least 50,000 Palestinians to move again, warning it would have a devastating impact on efforts to stop people from dying. "OCHA warns that today's mass displacement order issued by the Israeli military has dealt yet another devastating blow to the already fragile lifelines keeping people alive across the Gaza Strip. Today's order covers more than two square miles of Deir al Balah, spanning four neighbourhoods," it said in a news release. "Initial estimates indicate that between 50,000 and 80,000 people were in the area at the time the order was issued, including some 30,000 people sheltering in 57 displacement sites. At least 1,000 families have fled the area in recent hours." The U.N. added that the order split Deir al-Balah in two, saying it would further fragment and hamper the ability of the U.N. and other NGOs to move safely and effectively within Gaza, cutting off humanitarian access at a time when it was badly needed. The agency vowed that its staff would remain in place across multiple U.N. sites in Deir al-Balah and, having shared their coordinates with relevant bodies, called for the locations to be protected along with the civilian sites. Monday's offensive came a day after the Hamas-run health ministry said at least 67 people were killed as they were waiting for aid from the United Nations in northern Gaza. The U.N. World Food Program said its 25-truck convoy "encountered massive crowds of hungry civilians, which came under gunfire" after the trucks had cleared checkpoints. They were among 94 people killed on Sunday, according to the Gaza civil defense agency. The Gaza Health Ministry said another 19 died of starvation.
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
John Swinney demands ‘urgent international action' after aid convoy attack
John Swinney has demanded 'urgent international action' in response to Palestinians being killed while waiting for aid lorries in Gaza. The Israeli Defence Forces are said to have fired what it described as 'warning shots' at crowds who gathered around aid trucks bringing emergency supplies. The Scottish First Minister insisted: 'Reports that those seeking what little aid is permitted to enter Gaza face violence and death at the hands of the Israeli government demands urgent international action.' This statement @WFP is unbearable to read. The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow. — John Swinney (@JohnSwinney) July 21, 2025 His comments came as the UN World Food Programme told how its 25-truck convoy 'carrying vital food assisted' for 'starving communities in northern Gaza' had come 'under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire'. In a statement after the incident on Sunday July 20, it said: 'We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives.' Mr Swinney said that that was 'unbearable to read'. He insisted: 'The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow.' The First Minister made the demands as he wrote in a letter how a recent attack on the only Catholic church in Gaza had brought the 'horror of the situation painfully close to home'. Mr Swinney and his wife Elizabeth met the priest from the Holy Family Church in Gaza, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in Glasgow last year. I am deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in #Gaza. I assure the parish community of my spiritual closeness. I commend the souls of the deceased to the loving mercy of Almighty God, and pray for… — Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex) July 17, 2025 Father Romanelli was injured when an explosion hit the front of the church, killing three people and leaving others seriously injured. Pope Leo XIV has already said he was 'deeply saddened' by the 'military attack' on the church. And in a letter to Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and leading Catholic authority in the area, Mr Swinney told how people across Scotland are 'moved with both distress and anger at the unimaginable suffering facing the people of Gaza'. The First Minister told Cardinal Pizzabella: 'The heart-breaking reality of the situation in Gaza is that this tragedy, that has taken the lives of three of your parishioners, is but one of an untold number of tragedies that has come to pass in the region since October 7 2023.' Mr Swinney continued: 'That the people of Gaza can not even find peace and sanctuary within the confines of their place of worship beings me real pain.' He told the Cardinal that he would 'pray for the families of the dead, for the injured and for lasting peace in Gaza'. But Mr Swinney also pledged: 'The government I will lead will continue to do everything it can to help achieve a ceasefire in the region.' The First Minister's comments came as he noted that 'over 55,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began', adding that 'many more are being starved of food, water and humanitarian aid'.
Bloomberg
44 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Israel Poised to Assault Last Gaza Town
CC-Transcript 00:00How significant is it that Israel are pushing into David Bella? Well, to judge from Adam Bella's comments that you just add kinetic action, which is code for military strikes, is imminent in this town that Israel had skirted previously during this more than 21 month old war. The reason for that skirting, we're told, is that the Israelis and some Palestinians believe that in this town of held hostages, a group of hostages, potentially a large number of them hostages that Israel wants to get out alive through negotiations or possibly through a military rescue. It now appears the Israelis are signaling that they're willing to take this town in order to continue pressure on Hamas, to continue the conquest of the Gaza Strip, even potentially if there's a risk to those hostages. The question is whether this will be borne out on the ground with actual troop advances or whether this is an effort to generate more pressure on Hamas in those talks being hosted by Qatar to capitulate, to yield to the issue of hostages rather than see more death and destruction in the Gaza Strip. What are the main sticking points this time around? Because there was renewed hope, especially after the Iran Israel 12 day war, that some progress could be made. And indeed, we know, as you said, that negotiators were sent to to continue along with those ceasefire discussions. What are the sticking points this time around on the sticking points this time around? The sticking points we've seen before, except right now we have the rubber hitting the road in terms of us really being the last batch of hostages, 50 hostages down from the 250 taken by Hamas on October seven, 2023, that attack which triggered this ongoing war, whereas in previous cease fire talks, Hamas may have felt it could give up. And I'm putting those in quote marks. It could give up some of those hostages for the short term gains of a cease fire. Now, Hamas realizes that these truce talks are not just instrumental, they're existential for Hamas. Israel says that a truce, if it leads to a open ended end to the war, must also see the end of Hamas rule and the end of the Hamas arsenal in the Gaza Strip. Hamas is not willing to accommodate that. So the question is whether the sides can pull off another cease fire, which would not necessarily lead to an end to the war when they remain far apart on what an end to the war would look like. That, yet again, is keeping the sides apart, despite the optimistic remarks we heard just then from the Trump administration, which really would like to see this war in its rear window.
