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Four Palestinians die in storming of UN food warehouse a day after gunfire at new Gaza aid site
Four Palestinians die in storming of UN food warehouse a day after gunfire at new Gaza aid site

CTV News

time3 days ago

  • Health
  • CTV News

Four Palestinians die in storming of UN food warehouse a day after gunfire at new Gaza aid site

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Hundreds of Palestinians stormed a United Nations food warehouse Wednesday in Gaza in a desperate attempt to get something to eat, shouting and shoving each other and even ripping off pieces of the building to get inside. Four people died in the chaos, hospital officials said. The deaths came a day after a crowd was fired upon while overrunning a new aid-distribution site in the Gaza Strip set up by an Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding 48 others, Gaza's Health Ministry said. The Israeli military, which guards the site from a distance, said it fired only warning shots to control the situation. The foundation said its military contractors guarding the site did not open fire. The Red Cross Field Hospital said the 48 people who were wounded suffered gunshot wounds, including women and children. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country killed senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, the brother of Yahya Sinwar, one of the masterminds of the militant group's Oct. 7, 2023, attack, who was killed by Israeli forces last year. Speaking before parliament, Netanyahu included Sinwar in a list of Hamas leaders killed by Israeli forces, apparently confirming his death in a recent airstrike in Gaza. In other developments Wednesday, Israel carried out airstrikes on the international airport in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, destroying the last plane belonging to the country's flagship airline. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said it was the last plane used by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. The strikes came after Houthi rebels fired several missiles at Israel in recent days, without causing casualties. The Israeli military said it destroyed aircraft used by the rebels. It was not immediately clear if anyone was killed or wounded in the strikes. The crowd of Palestinians on Tuesday broke through fences around the distribution site where thousands had gathered. An Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gunfire and saw a military helicopter firing flares. The distribution hub outside Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah was opened Monday by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations. The U.N. and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new aid system, saying it will not be able to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people and that it allows Israel to use food to control the population. The organizations have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies. Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli border closures pushed Gaza to the brink of famine. Four dead as crowd storms warehouse holding U.N. aid Palestinians burst into the U.N.'s World Food Program warehouse Wednesday in the central Gaza Strip, pushing each other in the shadow of the cavernous facility's main door. Others ripped off pieces of the metal walls in an effort to get inside. Two people were fatally crushed in the crowd, while two others died of gunshot wounds, officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said. Scores of aid-seekers could be seen carrying large bags of flour as they fought their way back out into the sunlight through throngs of people pressing to get inside. Each bag of flour weighs around 25 kilograms (55 pounds). A United Nations envoy compared the limited aid being allowed into Gaza to 'a lifeboat after the ship has sunk.' Sigrid Kaag, acting U.N. special coordinator for the Mideast, told the U.N. Security Council that people facing famine in Gaza 'have lost hope.' 'Instead of saying `goodbye,' Palestinians in Gaza now say, 'See you in heaven,'' Kaag said Wednesday. The World Food Program, in response to the run on the warehouse, said 'humanitarian needs have spiraled out of control' after the long blockade. 'Gaza needs an immediate scale-up of food assistance. This is the only way to reassure people that they will not starve,' the group said. Violence erupted soon after new aid hub opened The distribution hub outside Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah was opened Monday by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations. The U.N. and other humanitarian organizations say the new system will not meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food to control the population. The organizations have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies. Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli border closures pushed Gaza to the brink of famine. Israel says it helped establish the new aid mechanism to prevent Hamas from siphoning off supplies, but it has provided no evidence of systematic diversion, and U.N. agencies say they have mechanisms in place to prevent it while delivering aid to all parts of the territory. GHF says it has established four hubs, two of which have begun operating in the now mostly uninhabited southern city of Rafah. It said that around eight truckloads of aid were distributed at the hubs on Wednesday without incident. About 600 trucks entered Gaza every day during a ceasefire earlier this year. The GHF sites are guarded by private security contractors and have chain-link fences channeling Palestinians into a what resemble military bases surrounded by large sand berms. Israeli forces are stationed nearby in a military zone separating Rafah from the rest of the territory. The U.N. and other aid groups have refused to participate in GHF's system, saying it violates humanitarian principles. They say it can be used by Israel to forcibly displace the population by requiring them to move near the few distribution hubs or else face starvation, a violation of international law. Netanyahu said Tuesday that 'there was some loss of control momentarily' at the distribution point, adding that 'happily, we brought it under control.' He repeated that Israel plans to move Gaza's entire population to a 'sterile zone' at the southern end of the territory while troops fight Hamas elsewhere. Netanyahu has also vowed to facilitate what he refers to as the voluntary emigration of much of Gaza's population to other countries, a plan for what Palestinians and others view as forcible expulsion. Israel says it destroyed the Houthis' last plane The Israeli strikes on the main airport in Yemen destroyed the last plane belonging to the country's flagship carrier, Yemenia, according to the airport. The airline did not say if anyone was wounded. Yemenia had a total of four registered aircraft, according to the plane-tracking website FlightRadar24. Israel destroyed three of the planes in a May 6 airstrike on the airport that also riddled the runway with craters. Houthi-backed Yemeni President Mahdi al-Mashat visited the airport Wednesday and said his group 'will not back down' from its support of people in Gaza until the siege ends, according to SABA Yemen News Agency. The Houthis have targeted Israel throughout the war in Gaza in solidarity with Palestinians, raising their profile at home and internationally as the last member of Iran's self-described 'Axis of Resistance' capable of launching regular attacks on Israel. The Houthi missiles have mostly been intercepted, although some have penetrated Israel's missile defense systems, causing casualties and damage. Israel has frequently struck back, especially around the vital Hodeida port. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Hamas still holds 58 hostages, around a third of them believed to be alive. Most of the rest were released in ceasefire deals or other agreements. Israeli forces have rescued eight and recovered dozens of bodies. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry says women and children make up most of the dead, but it does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. By Wafaa Shurafa, Samy Magdy And Melanie Lidman Magdy reported from Cairo and Lidman from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Jamey Keaten contributed to this report from Geneva.

Four killed as Palestinians storm UN warehouse in search for food
Four killed as Palestinians storm UN warehouse in search for food

BreakingNews.ie

time3 days ago

  • Health
  • BreakingNews.ie

Four killed as Palestinians storm UN warehouse in search for food

Hundreds of Palestinians have stormed a United Nations food warehouse in Gaza in a desperate attempt to get something to eat, shouting and shoving each other and even ripping off pieces of the building to get inside. Four people died in the chaos, hospital officials said. Advertisement The deaths came a day after a crowd was fired upon while overrunning a new aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip set up by an Israeli and US-backed foundation, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding 48 others, Gaza's Health Ministry said on Wednesday. The Red Cross Field Hospital said the wounded from that scene included women and children with gunshot wounds. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a Hamas leader was killed (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP) Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel has killed senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, apparently confirming his death in a recent air strike in Gaza. Speaking before parliament, Mr Netanyahu included Mr Sinwar in a list of Hamas leaders killed in Israeli strikes. Advertisement Mohammed Sinwar is the brother of Yahya Sinwar, one of the masterminds of Hamas' October 7 attack, who was killed by Israeli forces last year. People broke through the fences around the distribution site in Gaza on Tuesday, and an Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gunfire, and saw a military helicopter firing flares. Earlier, UN official Ajith Sunghay had said 47 Palestinians were injured, mostly by gunfire, at the hub set up by an Israeli and US-backed foundation outside Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah. It was not yet known whether the death and injuries were caused by Israeli forces, private contractors or others. The foundation said its military contractors had not fired on the crowd but 'fell back' before resuming aid operations. Israel said its troops nearby had fired warning shots. Advertisement Ghassan, 5, a boy that UNRWA met, was born with quadriplegia after oxygen deprivation at birth. His real suffering began when the war started in #Gaza . Medicine and specialised care kept him stable at 13kg. Now he weighs just 5kg. He is in pain and starving. The people of Gaza… — UNRWA (@UNRWA) May 28, 2025 The distribution hub outside Rafah was opened the day before by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations. The UN and other humanitarian organisations have rejected the new system, saying it will not be able to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies. Food and humanitarian aid packages were delivered by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation Mr Netanyahu said on Tuesday that 'there was some loss of control momentarily' at the distribution point, adding that 'happily, we brought it under control'. Advertisement He repeated that Israel plans to move Gaza's entire population to a 'sterile zone' at the southern end of the territory while troops fight Hamas elsewhere. Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli blockade pushed Gaza to the brink of famine. In a separate development, Israel said it had carried out air strikes on the international airport in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, after Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired several missiles at the country in recent days, without causing casualties. The Israeli military said it destroyed aircraft used by the rebels. Advertisement Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6, destroying the airport's terminal and leaving its runway riddled with craters. Some flights resumed to Sanaa on May 17.

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