6 days ago
Falling aid crate kills Palestinian nurse in Gaza
A Palestinian man has been crushed to death after a crate fell on him during an aerial aid drop over Gaza on Monday.
According to The Independent, Oday al-Quraan was waiting for planes carrying aid to drop their cargo, but could not get out of the way when the crates landed.
Israel has given permission for several states to drop aid into Gaza amid widespread starvation that has taken at least 180 lives since October 2023.
The besieged Palestinian territory has been under complete siege since the war began, but Israeli officials have strengthened the blockade in recent months, leading to malnutrition and what the UN describes as a "worst-case scenario" of famine.
"He is married and has two children. He was like every citizen in Gaza. He has been hungry for four months," Quraan's cousin Moatasem told the UK outlet.
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As Israel controls land entrances to Gaza and refuses to allow adequate aid into the territory over land, several countries have dropped aid over the territory from the air.
Aid groups criticise the strategy as inefficient and incapable of providing the level of food and other resources needed by Palestinians in Gaza.
Jordan blocks access to Middle East Eye after investigation on Gaza aid drops Read More »
The falling crates also present a risk of death or injury for Palestinians who cannot move out of their way in time.
In October 2024, Sami Mahmoud Ayyad, aged three, was killed when a parachute on an aid crate malfunctioned and fell on his tent in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza.
More than a thousand Palestinians have also died at aid distribution sites run by the controversial Israel- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Former US military officer and whistleblower Anthony Aguilar, who worked for the GHF as a contractor, said he witnessed the killing of Palestinians seeking aid by Israeli soldiers and mercenaries employed by the GHF.
