UN agency says Israeli tanks and snipers opened fire on Gaza crowd seeking aid
The World Food Programme condemned the violence that erupted in northern Gaza as Palestinians tried to reach a convoy of trucks carrying food.
The Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 80 people were killed in the incident.
The Israeli military has said it fired warning shots 'to remove an immediate threat', but has questioned the death toll reported by the Palestinians.
The accusation by a major aid agency that has had generally good working relations with Israel builds on descriptions by witnesses and others, who also said Israel opened fire on the crowd.
The bloodshed surrounding aid access highlights the increasingly precarious situation for people in Gaza who have been desperately seeking out food and other assistance, as the war shows no signs of ending.
Israel and Hamas are still engaged in ceasefire talks, but there appears to be no breakthrough and it is not clear whether any truce would bring the war to a lasting halt.
As the talks proceed, the death toll in the war-ravaged territory has climbed to more than 58,800 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
Its count does not distinguish between militants and civilians but the ministry says more than half of the dead are women and children.
The ministry is part of the Hamas government, but the UN and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.
Israel has meanwhile widened its evacuation orders for the territory to include an area that has been somewhat less hard-hit than others, indicating a new battleground may be opening up and squeezing Palestinians into ever tinier stretches of Gaza.
In northern Gaza on Sunday, the Health Ministry, witnesses and a UN official said Israeli forces opened fire toward crowds who tried to get food from a 25-truck convoy that had entered the hard-hit area.
The WFP statement, which said the crowd surrounding its convoy 'came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire,' backs up those claims.
The statement did not specify a death toll, saying only the incident resulted in the loss of 'countless lives.'
'These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation,' it said, adding that the incident occurred despite assurances from Israeli authorities that aid delivery would improve.
Part of those assurances, it said, was that armed forces would not be present nor engage along aid routes.
The Israeli military declined to comment on the WFP claims. Military spokesperson Lt Col Nadav Shoshani posted on X on Sunday that soldiers were told 'do not engage, do not shoot'.
Israel has not allowed international media to enter Gaza throughout the war, and the competing claims could not be independently verified.
Sunday's incident comes as Palestinian access to aid in the territory has been greatly diminished, and seeking that aid has become perilous.
A US and Israeli-backed aid system that has wrested some aid delivery from traditional providers like the UN has been wracked by violence and chaos as Palestinians heading toward its aid distribution sides have come under fire.
The group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, had said that the majority of the reported violence has not occurred at its sites.
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Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
More than 100 aid groups warn of starvation in Gaza as Israeli strikes kill 21, officials say
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Israel says its forces have only fired warning shots and that the death toll is exaggerated. Advertisement The Israeli government's 'restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death,' the letter said. WHO Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus echoed that criticism, telling reporters that acute malnutrition centers in Gaza are full of patients and lack adequate supplies. He said rates of acute malnutrition exceed 10% and that among pregnant and breastfeeding women, more than 20% are malnourished, often severely. The U.N. health agency's representative in the occupied Palestinian territories, Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, said there were more than 30,000 children under 5 with acute malnutrition in Gaza and that the WHO had reports that at least 21 children under 5 have died so far this year. Israel says critics are 'echoing Hamas' propaganda' The Israeli Foreign Ministry rejected the criticism in the open letter and accused the groups of 'echoing Hamas' propaganda.' It said it has allowed around 4,500 aid trucks into Gaza since lifting a complete blockade in May, and that more than 700 are waiting to be picked up and distributed by the U.N. That's an average of around 70 trucks a day, the lowest rate of the war and far below the 500 to 600 trucks a day the U.N. says are needed, and which entered during a six-week ceasefire earlier this year. The U.N. says it has struggled to deliver aid inside Gaza because of Israeli military restrictions, ongoing fighting and a breakdown of law and order. An alternative system established by Israel and an American contractor has been marred by violence and controversy. Advertisement Top adviser to Netanyahu will meet US envoy in Rome An official familiar with ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas said Ron Dermer, a top adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was traveling to Rome to meet Witkoff on Thursday to discuss the state of the talks. The official spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive negotiations. U.S. officials said Witkoff planned to head to Europe this week. The State Department spokesperson said he was headed to the Middle East in a sign that momentum may be building toward a deal. The evolving deal is expected to include a 60-day ceasefire in which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 others in phases in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Aid supplies would be ramped up, and the two sides would hold negotiations on a lasting truce. Overnight strikes kill at least 21 Israel has continued to carry out waves of daily airstrikes against what it says are militant targets but which often kill women and children. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas. Strikes overnight and into Wednesday killed at least 21 people, more than half of them women and children, according to local health officials. One of the strikes hit a house in Gaza City, killing at least 12 people, according to Shifa Hospital, which received the casualties. The dead included six children and two women, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it struck an Islamic Jihad militant, and that the incident was under review because of reports of civilian casualties. Another strike hit an apartment in northern Gaza, killing at least six people. Among the dead were three children and two women, including one who was pregnant. Eight others were wounded, the ministry said. A third strike hit a tent in Gaza City late Tuesday and killed three children, Shifa Hospital said. Advertisement There was no immediate comment from the military on those strikes. Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7 attack and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. More than 59,000 Palestinians have been killed during the war, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Goldenberg reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.
Hamilton Spectator
3 hours ago
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More than 100 aid groups warn of starvation in Gaza as Israeli strikes kill 21, officials say
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — More than 100 charity and human rights groups said Wednesday that Israel's blockade and ongoing military offensive are pushing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip toward starvation, as Israeli strikes killed another 21 people overnight, according to local health officials. Meanwhile, the Trump administration's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, was set to meet with a senior Israeli official about ceasefire talks, a sign that lower-level negotiations that have dragged on for weeks could be approaching a breakthrough. Experts say Gaza is at risk of famine because of Israel's blockade and offensive, launched in response to Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack. The head of the World Health Organization said Gaza is 'witnessing a deadly surge' in malnutrition and related diseases, and that a 'large proportion' of its roughly 2 million people are starving. Israel says it allows enough aid into the territory and faults delivery efforts by U.N. agencies, which say they are hindered by Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of security. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining 50 hostages it holds, around 20 of them believed to be alive, in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal. Israel has vowed to recover all the captives and continue the war until Hamas has been defeated or disarmed. 'Chaos, starvation and death' In an open letter, 115 organizations, including major international aid groups such as Doctors Without Borders, Mercy Corps and Save the Children, said they were watching their own colleagues, as well as the Palestinians they serve, 'waste away.' The letter blamed Israeli restrictions and 'massacres' at aid distribution points. Witnesses, health officials and the U.N. human rights office say Israeli forces have repeatedly fired on crowds seeking aid, killing more than 1,000 people . Israel says its forces have only fired warning shots and that the death toll is exaggerated. The Israeli government's 'restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death,' the letter said. WHO Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus echoed that criticism, telling reporters that acute malnutrition centers in Gaza are full of patients and lack adequate supplies. He said rates of acute malnutrition exceed 10% and that among pregnant and breastfeeding women, more than 20% are malnourished, often severely. The U.N. health agency's representative in the occupied Palestinian territories, Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, said there were more than 30,000 children under 5 with acute malnutrition in Gaza and that the WHO had reports that at least 21 children under 5 have died so far this year. 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Overnight strikes kill at least 21 Israel has continued to carry out waves of daily airstrikes against what it says are militant targets but which often kill women and children. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas. Strikes overnight and into Wednesday killed at least 21 people, more than half of them women and children, according to local health officials. One of the strikes hit a house in Gaza City, killing at least 12 people, according to Shifa Hospital , which received the casualties. The dead included six children and two women, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it struck an Islamic Jihad militant, and that the incident was under review because of reports of civilian casualties. Another strike hit an apartment in northern Gaza, killing at least six people. Among the dead were three children and two women, including one who was pregnant. Eight others were wounded, the ministry said. A third strike hit a tent in Gaza City late Tuesday and killed three children, Shifa Hospital said. There was no immediate comment from the military on those strikes. Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7 attack and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. More than 59,000 Palestinians have been killed during the war, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. ___ Goldenberg reported from Tel Aviv, Israel. ___ Follow AP's war coverage at Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . 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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
More than 100 humanitarian groups warn of mass starvation in Gaza
More than 100 international aid organisations and human rights groups are warning of mass starvation in Gaza and pressing for governments to take action. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Save the Children and Oxfam are among the signatories of a joint statement that says their colleagues and the people they serve are "wasting away". Israel, which controls the entry of all supplies into Gaza, denies it is responsible for the increasingly severe food shortages. The organisations' warning comes as the territory's Hamas-run health ministry said another 10 Palestinians had died as a result of malnutrition in the last 24 hours. That brings the number of such deaths across Gaza since Sunday to 43, according to the ministry. The UN has reported that hospitals have admitted people in a state of severe exhaustion caused by a lack of food, and that others were said to be collapsing in the streets. Latest updates from Gaza Gaza health ministry says 33 people died from malnutrition in 48 hours Church leaders return with 'broken hearts' after rare visit to Gaza Bowen: Israel's allies see evidence of war crimes in Gaza mounting up The Today Debate: What can stop the war in Gaza "As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families," the 109 humanitarian organisations said in the statement published on Wednesday. "With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes." Israel imposed a total blockade of aid deliveries to Gaza at the start of March and resumed its military offensive against Hamas two weeks later, collapsing a two-month ceasefire. It said it wanted to put pressure on the armed group to release its remaining Israeli hostages. Although the blockade was partially eased after almost two months, amid warnings of a looming famine from global experts, the shortages of food, medicine and fuel have worsened. "Doctors report record rates of acute malnutrition, especially among children and older people. Illnesses like acute watery diarrhoea are spreading, markets are empty, waste is piling up, and adults are collapsing on the streets from hunger and dehydration," the humanitarian organisations warned. "An aid worker providing psychosocial support spoke of the devastating impact on children: 'Children tell their parents they want to go to heaven, because at least heaven has food.'" The World Health Organization has said almost 100,000 women and children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition and need treatment as soon as possible. Dr Ahmad al-Farra, the head of paediatrics at Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, told the BBC that no food had been available for three days. He said children come to his unit going through varying degrees of starvation. Some were malnourished and died in the hospital's care, he added. Others came with separate health issues that prevented nutrients from being absorbed by their bodies. "We were afraid we would reach this critical point - and now we have," he said. The humanitarian organisations also noted that the UN says it has recorded the killing by the Israeli military of more than 1,050 Palestinians trying to get food since 27 May - the day after the controversial aid distribution mechanism run by the Israel- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operating as an alternative to the UN-led mechanism. According to the UN human rights office, 766 people have been killed in the vicinity of the GHF's four aid sites, which are located inside Israeli military zones and operated by US private security contractors. Another 288 people have been killed near UN and other aid convoys. The Israeli military says its troops deployed near the GHF sites have only fired warning shots and that they do not intentionally shoot civilians, while the GHF says the UN is using "false and misleading" figures from Gaza's health ministry. The humanitarian organisations also said almost all of Gaza's population has been displaced and is now confined to less than 12% of the territory not covered by Israeli evacuation orders or within Israeli militarised zones, making aid operations untenable. And they said an average of only 28 lorry loads of aid is being distributed in Gaza each day. "Just outside Gaza, in warehouses - 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 UN says Israel, as the occupying power, has an obligation under international law to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches all the population in need. Israel insists it acts in accordance with international law and facilitates the entry of aid while ensuring it does not reach Hamas. It has acknowledged recently that there has been a significant drop in supplies reaching Palestinians but blamed UN agencies. Israeli military body Cogat, which co-ordinates the entry of aid into Gaza, wrote on X on Monday that almost 4,500 lorry loads had entered Gaza over the past two months, including 2,500 tonnes of baby food and high-calorie special food for children. It also published drone footage showing what it said was some of the 950 lorry loads of aid waiting to be collected by the UN and other international organisations on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings. "The collection bottleneck remains the main obstacle to maintaining a consistent flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip," Cogat said. The UN has repeatedly said it struggles to get the necessary Israeli authorisation to collect incoming supplies with Gazan drivers from inside the crossing points and transport it through military zones. The ongoing hostilities, badly damaged roads, and severe fuel shortages have exacerbated problems. Criminal looting by armed gangs has also sometimes stopped operations. The UN has said a major problem in recent weeks has been that it is struggling to get commitments from the Israeli military that desperate Palestinians will not be killed while trying to collect aid from its convoys. UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told a briefing on Tuesday: "In too many cases where UN teams are permitted by Israel to collect supplies from closed compounds near Gaza's crossings, civilians approaching these trucks come under fire despite repeated assurances that troops would not engage or be present." "This cannot be stressed enough that this unacceptable pattern is the opposite of what facilitating humanitarian operations should look like. Absolutely no one should have to risk their lives to get food." The humanitarian organisations said they "cannot continue to hope that current arrangements will work" and that it is time for governments to "take decisive action". "Demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire; lift all bureaucratic and administrative restrictions; open all land crossings; ensure access to everyone in all of Gaza; reject military-controlled distribution models; restore a principled, UN-led humanitarian response and continue to fund principled and impartial humanitarian organisations." "States must pursue concrete measures to end the siege, such as halting the transfer of weapons and ammunition," they added. On Monday, the foreign ministers of the UK and 27 other countries called for an immediate end to the war in Gaza. Israel's foreign ministry said the statement was "disconnected from reality and sends the wrong message to Hamas". The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. At least 59,106 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
