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Middle East Eye
3 days ago
- Health
- Middle East Eye
Israeli attacks on aid centre kills three, raises death toll of relief seekers to 52
Israeli attacks on Palestinians seeking aid at a US-backed relief distribution centre in Rafah, southern Gaza, have resulted in the deaths of at least three people and injured 35 others. On Monday, the Gaza Government Media Office released a statement describing Israel's actions as "continuing the policy of starvation and systematic targeting of civilians for 93 days". "The 'Israeli' occupation forces committed a new crime by killing three starving civilians and injuring 35 others near so-called 'aid' distribution centers in Rafah," the statement read. Since the US-Israeli initiative of distributing aid began on 27 May, more than 52 people have been killed in assaults launched on starving civilians seeking food and essential supplies, with 340 more wounded. On Sunday, Israeli forces carried out a massacre targeting Palestinian aid seekers in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 32 people and wounding scores more, the Palestinian health ministry said on Sunday. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters According to eyewitnesses and local officials, Israeli troops opened fire directly on civilians gathered at two US-Israeli food distribution points in Rafah and central Gaza. At least 31 people were killed in Rafah and one in central Gaza, while over 200 were wounded, many of them critically. Israel kills 32 starving Palestinians in latest US aid point 'massacre' Read More » Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has condemned these assaults, stressing that "weaponising aid in this manner may constitute crimes against humanity". Claire Manera, MSF emergency coordinator, said the attack on Sunday displayed how "dehumanising, dangerous and severely ineffective" the new Israeli-US aid distribution system is. 'It has resulted in deaths and injuries of civilians that could have been prevented. Humanitarian aid must be provided only by humanitarian organisations who have the competence and determination to do it safely and effectively,' she added. Civilians in Gaza have been desperately seeking food supplies, as no essentials or humanitarian aid have entered the area since a complete Israeli siege began on 2 March. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a controversial US organisation backed by Israel, was launched to bypass the UN's aid infrastructure in Gaza. Senior humanitarian officials have condemned the scheme, saying Israel should stop blocking the UN-led system and allow aid to flow without obstruction. Most humanitarian organisations, including the UN, have distanced themselves from GHF, arguing that the group violates humanitarian principles by restricting aid to south and central Gaza; requiring Palestinians to walk long distances to collect aid; and only providing limited aid, among other critiques.
Leaders
3 days ago
- Health
- Leaders
Medical NGO Blames US Aid Agency for Deadly Chaos in Gaza
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders has blamed the distribution system of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation for causing chaos in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, according to Arab News. The charity said that Israel was killing and shooting Palestinians while trying to secure food from the new US-backed organization. Gaza's civil defense agency stated that Israeli forces killed 31 Gazans at the site. However, the GHF and Israeli authorities rejected this allegation and denied any such incident took place. Meanwhile, the charity, known by its French name MSF, and other medics reported treating crowds of locals with gunshot wounds at the Nasser hospital in the nearby town of Khan Younis. 'Patients told MSF they were shot from all sides by drones, helicopters, boats, tanks and Israeli soldiers on the ground,' MSF said in a statement. In the light of this, MSF emergency coordinator Claire Manera described the distribution system of aid delivery as 'dehumanizing, dangerous and severely ineffective.' Manera also noted that the system has caused several deaths and injuries of civilians that could have been prevented. 'Humanitarian aid must be provided only by humanitarian organizations who have the competence and determination to do it safely and effectively,' Manera added. Furthermore, MSF Communications Officer Nour Alsaqa indicated that hospital corridors were full of patients, mostly men, with 'visible gunshot wounds in their limbs.' 'They told us to take food — then they fired from every direction,' he said. 'This isn't aid. It's a lie,' one of the injured said. Related Topics: Italian Puglia Region Cuts Ties with Israel over Gaza Genocide Saudi FM Arrives in Jordan for Gaza Meeting Barcelona Severs Twin-City Ties with Tel Aviv over Gaza War Short link : Post Views: 7
Saudi Gazette
3 days ago
- Health
- Saudi Gazette
Red Cross says at least 21 killed and dozens shot in Gaza aid incident
CAIRO — A "mass casualty influx" of people, many with gunshot or shrapnel wounds, was received at a Red Cross field hospital in southern Gaza, the organization said, following disputed reports about an incident near an aid distribution center in Rafah. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said 21 people were "declared dead upon arrival" while women and children were among 179 cases. The organization's statement came after the Hamas-run civil defense agency in Gaza said at least 31 people were killed and many more wounded in the incident, which it blamed on "Israeli gunfire" targeting civilians. But the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said findings from an initial inquiry showed its forces had not fired at people while they were near or within the aid centre. The IDF also released drone footage it said showed armed and masked men throwing stones and shooting at civilians while they were collecting aid in the nearby city of Khan Younis. The BBC could not immediately verify the footage. Israel does not allow international news organisations, including the BBC, into Gaza, making verifying what is happening in the territory difficult. The group that runs the aid distribution centre, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), also denied the claims of injuries and casualties at its site and said they had been spread by Hamas. As of Sunday evening, the situation on the ground remained unclear. In its statement, the ICRC said the "Red Cross Field Hospital in Rafah received a mass casualty influx of 179 cases, including women and children" early in the morning on Sunday. It said "the majority suffered gunshot or shrapnel wounds", and "twenty-one patients were declared dead upon arrival". It is unclear if the number of people killed reported by the ICRC is separate to the Hamas health ministry's reports. "All patients said they had been trying to reach an aid distribution site," the ICRC said. The ICRC said it was the "highest number of weapon-wounded in a single incident since the establishment of the field hospital over a year ago", and that it "far surpassed" the capacity of the 60-bed facility. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said in a statement that it had also responded to the "mass casualty" incident, and that the blood bank at Nasser hospital, where the injured were treated, was almost empty, with medical staff donating blood themselves to help the injured. Claire Manera, the organisation's emergency co-ordinator, said that the incident had "shown once again that this new system of aid delivery is dehumanising, dangerous and severely ineffective". The IDF said in a statement: "In recent hours, false reports have been spread, including serious allegations against the IDF regarding fire toward Gazan residents in the area of the humanitarian aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip. "Findings from an initial inquiry indicate that the IDF did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site and that reports to this effect are false," it added. MSF said at least two patients told them they and others had been shot while trying to get aid. MSF communications officer Nour Alsaqa said in a statement that as MSF staff were treating patients, they also "received confirmation that a colleague's brother had been killed while attempting to collect aid from the centre". Another incident was said to have happened near a separate aid centre in the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza, with the Palestinian Red Crescent reporting 14 injured. The BBC was contacted by doctors at the Nasser hospital who said they had received about 200 people with injuries caused by bullets or shrapnel. Local journalists and activists shared footage of bodies and wounded people being transported on donkey carts to the Red Cross field hospital in the al-Mawasi area. The BBC has examined footage of bodies being carried on carts and in the back of lorries to Nasser Hospital. Gaza's health ministry said more than 200 cases had arrived at hospitals, including 31 dead. Seventy-nine of the injured were brought to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, according to the emergency department, medical staff from British charity Medical Aid for Palestinians reported. Those killed and injured "were primarily struck by live gunfire, with many victims sustaining direct shots to the head or chest", the charity's staff said. Victoria Rose, a British surgeon who has been working at Nasser Hospital, recorded a video mid-morning in which she motions to the beds with patients behind her and says "all the bays are full and they're all gunshot wounds". The GHF, which distributes aid at these sites, denied any incident occurred near its distribution centres. An IDF soldier in Rafah contacted the BBC to say that Israeli soldiers did fire near the crowd, but not at them, and that no-one was hit. BBC Verify: How controversial US-Israeli backed Gaza aid plan turned to chaos Mohammed Ghareeb, a journalist in Rafah, told the BBC that Palestinians had gathered near the aid center run by the GHF when Israeli tanks approached and opened fire on the crowd. Ghareeb said the crowd of Palestinians were near Al-Alam roundabout around 04:30 local time (02:30 BST), close to the aid center run by GHF, shortly before Israeli tanks appeared and opened fire. "The dead and wounded lay on the ground for a long time," he said. "Rescue crews could not access the area, which is under Israeli control. This forced residents to use donkey carts to transport victims to the field hospital." Mahmud Bassal, a spokesman for Gaza's main emergency service the Civil Defence, told AFP news agency that more than 100 people were wounded "due to gunfire from Israeli vehicles towards thousands of citizens". The incidents underscore the dire humanitarian conditions in Rafah, where recent Israeli military operations have severely limited access to aid and emergency services. On Saturday, crowds of civilians rushed aid trucks into Gaza, the World Food Programme said, as hunger and desperation created chaotic scenes. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is a new US and Israeli-backed organization that has been distributing food at designated sites across Gaza. Israel set up the plan after accusing Hamas of stealing aid, which the group denies. The GHF said it had distributed 4.7 million meals this week, which the BBC has not been able to independently verify. A military campaign was launched by Israel in Gaza in response to Hamas's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. At least 54,418 people have been killed in Gaza during the war, according to the territory's health ministry. — BBC
Al Arabiya
3 days ago
- General
- Al Arabiya
Doctors without Borders blames US-backed aid agency for deadly Gaza chaos
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders said Sunday that people it treated at a Gaza aid site run by a new US-backed organization reported being 'shot from all sides' by Israeli forces. The NGO, known by its French name MSF, blamed the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's aid distribution system for chaos at the scene in the southern Gaza town of Rafah. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli fire killed 31 Palestinians at the site. Witnesses told AFP the Israeli military had opened fire. The GHF and Israeli authorities denied any such incident took place but MSF and other medics reported treating crowds of locals with gunshot wounds at the Nasser hospital in the nearby town of Khan Younis. 'Patients told MSF they were shot from all sides by drones, helicopters, boats, tanks and Israeli soldiers on the ground,' MSF said in a statement. MSF emergency coordinator Claire Manera in the statement called the GHF's system of aid delivery 'dehumanizing, dangerous and severely ineffective.' 'It has resulted in deaths and injuries of civilians that could have been prevented. Humanitarian aid must be provided only by humanitarian organizations who have the competence and determination to do it safely and effectively.' MSF communications officer Nour Alsaqa in the statement reported hospital corridors filled with patients, mostly men, with 'visible gunshot wounds in their limbs.' MSF quoted one injured man, Mansour Sami Abdi, as describing people fighting over just five pallets of aid. 'They told us to take food -- then they fired from every direction,' he said. 'This isn't aid. It's a lie.' The Israeli military said an initial inquiry found its troops 'did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site.' A GHF spokesperson said: 'These fake reports have been actively fomented by Hamas,' the Islamic militant group that Israel has vowed to destroy in Gaza.
The Sun
3 days ago
- Health
- The Sun
Medical NGO blames new US aid group for deadly Gaza chaos
RAFAH, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES: Medical charity Doctors Without Borders said Sunday that people it treated at a Gaza aid site run by a new US-backed organisation reported being 'shot from all sides' by Israeli forces. The NGO, known by its French name MSF, blamed the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's aid distribution system for chaos at the scene in the southern Gaza town of Rafah. Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli fire killed 31 Palestinians at the site. Witnesses told AFP the Israeli military had opened fire. The GHF and Israeli authorities denied any such incident took place but MSF and other medics reported treating crowds of locals with gunshot wounds at the Nasser hospital in the nearby town of Khan Younis. 'Patients told MSF they were shot from all sides by drones, helicopters, boats, tanks and Israeli soldiers on the ground,' MSF said in a statement. MSF emergency coordinator Claire Manera in the statement called the GHF's system of aid delivery 'dehumanising, dangerous and severely ineffective'. 'It has resulted in deaths and injuries of civilians that could have been prevented. Humanitarian aid must be provided only by humanitarian organisations who have the competence and determination to do it safely and effectively.' MSF communications officer Nour Alsaqa in the statement reported hospital corridors filled with patients, mostly men, with 'visible gunshot wounds in their limbs'. MSF quoted one injured man, Mansour Sami Abdi, as describing people fighting over just five pallets of aid. 'They told us to take food -- then they fired from every direction,' he said. 'This isn't aid. It's a lie.' The Israeli military said an initial inquiry found its troops 'did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site'. A GHF spokesperson said: 'These fake reports have been actively fomented by Hamas,' the Islamic militant group that Israel has vowed to destroy in Gaza.
