31 Palestinians killed heading to Gaza aid site
At least 31 people were killed and over 170 were wounded Sunday as large crowds were on their way to receive food in the Gaza Strip, health officials and witnesses said. Witnesses said Israeli forces fired toward the crowds just before dawn, around a kilometer from an aid site run by an Israeli-backed foundation.
Israel's military denied its forces fired at civilians near or within the site in the southern city of Rafah. An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with procedure, said troops fired warning shots at several suspects advancing toward them overnight.
The military also released drone footage it said was shot Sunday, apparently in daylight, in the southern city of Khan Younis, showing what it said were armed, masked men firing at civilians trying to collect aid. The Associated Press could not independently verify the video, and it was unclear who was being targeted. 'Hamas is doing everything in its power to prevent the successful distribution of food in Gaza," the statement said.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — promoted by Israel and the US — said in a statement it delivered aid 'without incident,' and released a separate video it said was shot Sunday at the site that appeared to show people collecting aid. The AP was not able to verify the video. The foundation has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones where independent media has no access.
It was the deadliest incident yet around the new aid distribution system, which has operated for less than a week.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement that its field hospital in Rafah received 179 casualties, including women and children, 21 of them declared dead upon arrival, the majority with gunshot or shrapnel wounds. It was unclear if any of the dead were militants.
'All patients said they had been trying to reach an aid distribution site,' the ICRC said, calling it the highest number of 'weapon-wounded' people in a single incident since the hospital was set up over a year ago.
The head of the World Food Program, Cindy McCain, told ABC News that staffers on the ground were reporting people killed and called it a 'tragedy.' 'Aid distribution has become a death trap,' the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said in a statement.
In a separate statement, Israeli military chief of staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir ordered that more aid sites be established — and that troops' ground operation be expanded in unspecified parts of northern and southern Gaza.
Multiple witnesses have said Israeli troops fired on crowds near the foundation's sites. Before Sunday, 17 people were killed while trying to reach them, according to Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Gaza Health Ministry's records department.
The foundation says private security contractors guarding its sites have not fired on crowds. Israel's military has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions.
The foundation said in a statement it distributed 16 truckloads of aid early Sunday 'without incident,' and dismissed what it described as 'false reporting about deaths, mass injuries and chaos.' UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to work with the new system, saying it violates humanitarian principles.
Thousands of people headed toward the distribution site hours before dawn. As they approached, Israeli forces ordered them to disperse and come back later, witnesses said. When the crowds reached the Flag Roundabout, around 1 kilometer away, at around 3 a.m., Israeli forces opened fire, the witnesses said.
'There was fire from all directions, from naval warships, from tanks and drones,' said Amr Abu Teiba, who was in the crowd.
He said he saw at least 10 bodies with gunshot wounds and several other wounded people, including women. People used carts to ferry the dead and wounded. 'The scene was horrible," he said.
Most people were shot 'in the upper part of their bodies, including the head, neck and chest," said Dr. Marwan al-Hams, a Health Ministry official at Nasser Hospital, where many were transferred from the Red Cross field hospital. A colleague, surgeon Khaled al-Ser, said 150 wounded people had arrived, along with 28 bodies. (AP)
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Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
31 Palestinians killed heading to Gaza aid site
At least 31 people were killed and over 170 were wounded Sunday as large crowds were on their way to receive food in the Gaza Strip, health officials and witnesses said. Witnesses said Israeli forces fired toward the crowds just before dawn, around a kilometer from an aid site run by an Israeli-backed foundation. Israel's military denied its forces fired at civilians near or within the site in the southern city of Rafah. An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with procedure, said troops fired warning shots at several suspects advancing toward them overnight. The military also released drone footage it said was shot Sunday, apparently in daylight, in the southern city of Khan Younis, showing what it said were armed, masked men firing at civilians trying to collect aid. The Associated Press could not independently verify the video, and it was unclear who was being targeted. 'Hamas is doing everything in its power to prevent the successful distribution of food in Gaza," the statement said. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — promoted by Israel and the US — said in a statement it delivered aid 'without incident,' and released a separate video it said was shot Sunday at the site that appeared to show people collecting aid. The AP was not able to verify the video. The foundation has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones where independent media has no access. It was the deadliest incident yet around the new aid distribution system, which has operated for less than a week. The International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement that its field hospital in Rafah received 179 casualties, including women and children, 21 of them declared dead upon arrival, the majority with gunshot or shrapnel wounds. It was unclear if any of the dead were militants. 'All patients said they had been trying to reach an aid distribution site,' the ICRC said, calling it the highest number of 'weapon-wounded' people in a single incident since the hospital was set up over a year ago. The head of the World Food Program, Cindy McCain, told ABC News that staffers on the ground were reporting people killed and called it a 'tragedy.' 'Aid distribution has become a death trap,' the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said in a statement. In a separate statement, Israeli military chief of staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir ordered that more aid sites be established — and that troops' ground operation be expanded in unspecified parts of northern and southern Gaza. Multiple witnesses have said Israeli troops fired on crowds near the foundation's sites. Before Sunday, 17 people were killed while trying to reach them, according to Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Gaza Health Ministry's records department. The foundation says private security contractors guarding its sites have not fired on crowds. Israel's military has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions. The foundation said in a statement it distributed 16 truckloads of aid early Sunday 'without incident,' and dismissed what it described as 'false reporting about deaths, mass injuries and chaos.' UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to work with the new system, saying it violates humanitarian principles. Thousands of people headed toward the distribution site hours before dawn. As they approached, Israeli forces ordered them to disperse and come back later, witnesses said. When the crowds reached the Flag Roundabout, around 1 kilometer away, at around 3 a.m., Israeli forces opened fire, the witnesses said. 'There was fire from all directions, from naval warships, from tanks and drones,' said Amr Abu Teiba, who was in the crowd. He said he saw at least 10 bodies with gunshot wounds and several other wounded people, including women. People used carts to ferry the dead and wounded. 'The scene was horrible," he said. Most people were shot 'in the upper part of their bodies, including the head, neck and chest," said Dr. Marwan al-Hams, a Health Ministry official at Nasser Hospital, where many were transferred from the Red Cross field hospital. A colleague, surgeon Khaled al-Ser, said 150 wounded people had arrived, along with 28 bodies. (AP)
Korea Herald
11-05-2025
- Korea Herald
Israeli airstrikes kill 23 in Gaza as outcry over aid blockade grows
Israeli airstrikes overnight and into Saturday killed at least 23 Palestinians in Gaza, including three children and their parents whose tent was bombed in Gaza City, health officials said. The bombardment continued as international warnings grow over Israeli plans to control aid distribution in Gaza as Israel's blockade on the territory of over 2 million people is in its third month. The United Naitons and aid groups have rejected Israel's aid distribution moves, including a plan from a group of American security contractors, ex-military officers and humanitarian aid officials calling itself the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Among the 23 bodies brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours were those of the family of five whose tent was struck in Gaza City's Sabra district, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Another Israeli strike late Friday hit a warehouse belonging to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, in the northern area of Jabaliya. Four people were killed, according to the Indonesian Hospital, where bodies were taken. AP video showed fires burning in the shattered building. The warehouse was empty after being hit and raided multiple times during Israeli ground offensives against Hamas fighters over the past year, said residents including Hamza Mohamed. Israel's military said nine soldiers were lightly wounded Friday night by an explosive device while searching Gaza City's Shijaiyah neighborhood. It said they were evacuated to a hospital in Israel. Israel resumed its bombardment in Gaza on March 18, shattering a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. Ground troops have seized more than half the territory and have been conducting raids and searching parts of northern Gaza and the southernmost city of Rafah. Large parts of both areas have been flattened by months of Israeli operations. Under Israel's blockade, charity kitchens are virtually the only source of food left in Gaza, but dozens have shut down in recent days as food supplies run out. Aid groups say more closures are imminent. Israel has said the blockade is meant to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages and disarm. Rights groups have called the blockade a 'starvation tactic' and a potential war crime. Israel accuses Hamas and other militants of siphoning off aid in Gaza, though it hasn't presented evidence for its claims. The UN denies significant diversion takes place, saying it monitors distribution. The 19-month-old war in Gaza is the most devastating ever fought between Israel and Hamas. It has killed more than 52,800 people there, more than half of them women and children, and wounded more than 119,000, according to the Health Ministry. The ministry's count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants, without giving evidence. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped over 250 others. Hamas still holds about 59 hostages, with around a third believed to still be alive. Hamas released a video Saturday showing hostages Elkana Bohbot and Yosef-Haim Ohana, who appeared under duress. They were abducted during the Oct. 7 attack from a music festival where over 300 people were killed. Hamas released a video of them a month and half ago and has released several videos of Bohbot alone since then. Protesters on Saturday night rallied once more in Tel Aviv to demand a ceasefire that would bring all hostages home. 'Can you grasp this? The Israeli government is about to embark on a military operation that could and will endanger the lives of the hostages,' Michel Illouz, father of hostage Guy Illouz, told the gathering, referring to the plan to vastly expand operations in Gaza. (AP)
Korea Herald
21-04-2025
- Korea Herald
Israeli probe into the killings of 15 Palestinian medics in Gaza finds 'professional failures'
JERUSALEM (AP) — An Israeli investigation into the killings of 15 Palestinian medics last month in Gaza by Israeli forces said Sunday it found a chain of 'professional failures' and a deputy commander has been fired. The shootings outraged many in the international community, with some calling the killings a war crime. Medical workers have special protection under international humanitarian law. The International Red Cross/Red Crescent called it the deadliest attack on its personnel in eight years. Israel at first claimed that the medics' vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire but later backtracked. Cellphone video recovered from one medic contradicted Israel's initial account. Footage shows the ambulances had lights flashing and logos visible as they pulled up to help another ambulance that earlier came under fire. The military investigation found that the deputy battalion commander acted under the incorrect assumption that all the ambulances belonged to Hamas militants. It said the deputy commander, operating under 'poor night visibility,' felt his troops were under threat when the ambulances sped toward their position and medics rushed out to check the victims. The military said the flashing lights were less visible on night-vision drones and goggles. The ambulances immediately came under a barrage of gunfire that went on for more than five minutes with brief pauses. Minutes later, soldiers opened fire at a UN car that stopped at the scene. Eight Red Crescent personnel, six Civil Defense workers and a United Nations staffer were killed in the shooting before dawn on March 23 by troops conducting operations in Tel al-Sultan, a district of the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Troops bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. UN and rescue workers were only able to reach the site a week later. The Israeli military said soldiers buried the bodies to prevent them from being mangled by stray dogs and coyotes until they could be collected, and that the ambulances were moved to allow the route to be used for civilian evacuations later that day. The investigation found that the decision to crush the ambulances was wrong but said there was no attempt to conceal the shootings. Mar. Gen. Yoav Har-Even, who oversees the military's investigations, said the military notified international organizations later that day and helped rescue workers locate the bodies. The head of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society has said the men were 'targeted at close range." Night-vision drone footage provided by the military shows soldiers were 20 to 30 meters away from the ambulances. The deputy commander was the first to open fire, leading the rest of the soldiers to start shooting, Har-Even said. 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'Without accountability, we risk continuing to watch atrocities unfolding, and the norms designed to protect us all, eroding. Too many civilians, including aid workers, have been killed in Gaza. Their stories have not all made the headlines,' Jonathan Whittall, interim head in Gaza of the UN humanitarian office OCHA, said in a statement responding to the findings. There was no immediate public reaction from the Red Crescent or Civil Defense. The findings have been turned over the Military Advocate General, which can decide whether to file civil charges. It is meant to be an independent body, with oversight by Israel's attorney general and Supreme Court. There are no outside investigations of the killings underway. Israeli strikes have killed more than 150 emergency responders from the Red Crescent and Civil Defense, most of them while on duty, as well as over 1,000 health workers during the war, according to the UN. The Israeli military rarely investigates such incidents. Israel has accused Hamas of moving and hiding its fighters inside ambulances and emergency vehicles, as well as in hospitals and other civilian infrastructure, arguing that justifies strikes on them. Medical personnel largely deny the accusations. Palestinians and international human rights groups have repeatedly accused Israel's military of failing to properly investigate or whitewashing misconduct by its troops. Har-Even said the Israeli military is currently investigating 421 incidents in Gaza during the war, with 51 concluded and sent to the Military Advocate General. There was no immediate information on the number of investigations involving potential wrongful deaths or how many times the MAG has pursued criminal charges. The International Criminal Court, established by the international community as a court of last resort, has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant of war crimes. Israel, which is not a member of the court, has long asserted that its legal system is capable of investigating the army, and Netanyahu has accused the ICC of antisemitism. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas currently holds 59 hostages, 24 of them believed to be alive. Israel's offensive has since killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Frustration has been growing on both sides, with rare public protests against Hamas in Gaza and continued weekly rallies in Israel pressing the government to reach a deal to bring all hostages home.
