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STV News
3 days ago
- Politics
- STV News
John Swinney demands ‘urgent international action' after aid convoy attack
The Israeli Defence Forces are said to have fired what it described as 'warning shots' at crowds who gathered around aid trucks bringing emergency supplies. The Scottish First Minister insisted: 'Reports that those seeking what little aid is permitted to enter Gaza face violence and death at the hands of the Israeli government demands urgent international action.' His comments came as the UN World Food Programme told how its 25-truck convoy 'carrying vital food assisted' for 'starving communities in northern Gaza' had come 'under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire'. In a statement after the incident on Sunday July 20, it said: 'We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives.' Swinney said that that was 'unbearable to read'. He insisted: 'The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow.' The First Minister made the demands as he wrote in a letter how a recent attack on the only Catholic church in Gaza had brought the 'horror of the situation painfully close to home'. Swinney and his wife Elizabeth met the priest from the Holy Family Church in Gaza, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in Glasgow last year. Father Romanelli was injured when an explosion hit the front of the church, killing three people and leaving others seriously injured. Pope Leo XIV has already said he was 'deeply saddened' by the 'military attack' on the church. And in a letter to Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and leading Catholic authority in the area, Swinney told how people across Scotland are 'moved with both distress and anger at the unimaginable suffering facing the people of Gaza'. The First Minister told Cardinal Pizzabella: 'The heart-breaking reality of the situation in Gaza is that this tragedy, that has taken the lives of three of your parishioners, is but one of an untold number of tragedies that has come to pass in the region since October 7 2023.' Swinney continued: 'That the people of Gaza can not even find peace and sanctuary within the confines of their place of worship beings me real pain.' He told the Cardinal that he would 'pray for the families of the dead, for the injured and for lasting peace in Gaza'. But Swinney also pledged: 'The government I will lead will continue to do everything it can to help achieve a ceasefire in the region.' The First Minister's comments came as he noted that 'over 55,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began', adding that 'many more are being starved of food, water and humanitarian aid'. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Al-Ahram Weekly
3 days ago
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
UPDATED: Israeli soldiers kill 93 starving Palestinians near 'aid center' in Gaza - War on Gaza
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on crowds of Palestinians trying to collect humanitarian aid in the war-torn Palestinian territory on Sunday, killing 93 people and wounding dozens more. Eighty were killed as truckloads of aid arrived in the north, while nine others were reported shot near an aid point close to Rafah in the south, where dozens of people lost their lives just 24 hours earlier. Four were killed near another aid site in Khan Younis, also in the south, agency spokesman Mahmud Basal told AFP. The UN World Food Programme said its 25-truck convoy carrying food aid "encountered massive crowds of hungry civilians which came under gunfire" near Gaza City, soon after it crossed from Israel and cleared checkpoints. Civilian deaths have become routine as Israeli forces continue striking crowds gathered near aid centres, where people are facing extreme shortages of food and essential supplies because of the Israeli blockade on the strip. The UN said earlier this month that nearly 800 aid-seekers had been killed since late May, including on the routes of aid convoys. Like 'hunting animals' In Gaza City, Qasem Abu Khater, 36, told AFP he had rushed to try to get a bag of flour but instead found a desperate crowd of thousands and "deadly overcrowding and pushing". "The tanks were firing shells randomly at us and Israeli sniper soldiers were shooting as if they were hunting animals in a forest," he added. "Dozens of people were martyred right before my eyes and no one could save anyone." The WFP condemned violence against civilians seeking aid as "completely unacceptable". Israel on Sunday withdrew the residency permit of head of the OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) office in Israel, Jonathan Whittall, who has repeatedly condemned the humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, in a post to X, accused him of spreading lies about the war in Gaza. Israel's genocidal campaign has killed at least 58,895 Palestinians and wounded nearly 140,000 others, the majority of them women and children, according to Gaza's health ministry. Independent investigations suggest the true death toll in Gaza could be far higher -- approaching 100,000 -- as thousands remain missing and are presumed buried beneath the rubble. Most of Gaza's population of more than two million people have been displaced at least once during the war and there have been repeated evacuation calls across large parts of the coastal enclave. On Sunday morning, the Israeli military told residents and displaced Palestinians sheltering in the Deir el-Balah area to move south immediately due to imminent operations in the area. The bodies of Palestinians who were killed while attempting to access aid trucks entering northern Gaza through the Zikim crossing with Israel are brought to a clinic in Gaza City, Sunday, July 20, 2025. AP Whole families were seen carrying what few belongings they have on packed donkey carts heading south. "They threw leaflets at us and we don't know where we are going and we don't have shelter or anything," one man told AFP. The displacement order was "another devastating blow to the already fragile lifelines keeping people alive across the Gaza Strip", the UN OCHA said on Sunday. According to the aid agency, 87.8 percent of Gaza is now under displacement orders or within Israeli militarized zones, leaving "2.1 million civilians squeezed into a fragmented 12 per cent of the Strip, where essential services have collapsed." Palestinians react after carrying the bodies of those killed while trying to reach aid trucks entering northern Gaza through the Zikim crossing with Israel, at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Sunday, July 20, 2025. AP Earlier, Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Health Ministry's records department, told The Associated Press At least 79 Palestinians were killed while trying to reach aid entering through the Zikim crossing with Israel. More than 150 people were wounded, some in critical condition, hospitals said. The UN World Food Program said 25 trucks with aid had entered for 'starving communities' when it encountered massive crowds. A UN official, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to comment on the incident to the media, said Israeli forces opened fire toward crowds who tried to take food from the convoy. Footage taken by the U.N. and shared with the AP showed Palestinian men running as automatic gunfire was heard. 'Suddenly, tanks surrounded us and trapped us as gunshots and strikes rained down. We were trapped for around two hours,' said Ehab Al-Zei, who had been waiting for flour and said he hadn't eaten bread in 15 days. He spoke over the din of people carrying the dead and wounded. 'I will never go back again. Let us die of hunger, it's better.' Nafiz Al-Najjar, who was injured, said tanks and drones targeted people 'randomly' and he saw his cousin and others shot dead. Al-Waheidi said Israeli gunfire killed another six Palestinians in the Shakoush area, hundreds of meters (yards) north of a hub of the recently created Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.- and Israel-backed group, in the southern city of Rafah. The GHF said it was not aware of any incident near its site. Witnesses and health workers say several hundred people have been killed by Israeli fire while trying to access the group's aid distribution sites. Separately, seven Palestinians were killed while sheltering in tents in Khan Younis in the south, including a 5-year-old boy, according to the Kuwait Specialized Field Hospital, which received the casualties. Women mourning the death of a relative at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis on 20 July. AFP Ethnic cleansing There was new alarm as Israel's military issued evacuation orders for parts of central Gaza, one of the few areas where it has rarely operated with ground troops and where many international organizations trying to distribute aid are located. One group said several offices were told to evacuate immediately. There was no immediate Israeli comment. The new evacuation orders cut access between the central city of Deir al-Balah and Rafah and Khan Younis in the narrow territory. The military also reiterated evacuation orders for northern Gaza. Palestinians were startled to see the orders for parts of Deir al-Balah, a relative haven. 'All of Rafah is under evacuation, and now you have decided that half of Deir al-Balah is under evacuation. Where will we move to?' asked resident Hassan Abu Azab, as others piled everything from bedding to live ducks onto carts and other vehicles. Smoke rose in the distance, with blasts and the sound of a siren. The Medical Aid for Palestinians group said several humanitarian organizations' offices and guesthouses had been 'ordered to evacuate immediately' and nine clinics, including the MAP one, had been forced to shut down. It was not immediately clear what other groups were affected. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
The National
3 days ago
- Politics
- The National
John Swinney condemns 'unbearable' attack on Palestinian aid seekers
On Sunday, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported large crowds came under gunfire near the Zikim crossing with Israel as 25 aid trucks carrying "vital food assistance" were arriving. Medical teams said that 79 people were killed and more than 150 people were injured, many of them in critical condition. READ MORE: John Swinney 'received no response' from Keir Starmer on Gaza child evacuations A statement published by the WFP said that civilians came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire as the aid convoy approached. The agency condemned the "violent incident" as it highlighted the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, pointing towards around 90,000 woman and children in the enclave who are malnourished. "We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives. Many more suffered life-threatening injuries," the statement said. The agency added: "These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This terrible incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are forced to be conducted in Gaza. "Today's violent incident comes despite assurances from Israeli authorities that humanitarian operational conditions would improve; including that armed forces will not be present nor engage at any stage along humanitarian convoy routes. "There should never, ever, be armed groups near or on our aid convoys, as reiterated on many occasions to all parties to the conflict. "Shootings near humanitarian missions, convoys and food distributions must stop immediately. "Any violence involving civilians seeking humanitarian aid is completely unacceptable." First Minister John Swinney shared the statement on social media as he said: "This statement @WFP is unbearable to read. First Minister John Swinney (Image: PA) "The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow." This statement @WFP is unbearable to read. The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow. — John Swinney (@JohnSwinney) July 21, 2025 It comes after Swinney wrote to Prime Minister Keir Starmer urging him to support the evacuation of injured Palestinian children to hospitals in Scotland. READ MORE: 3 women charged under Terrorism Act after breaching Edinburgh arms factory The First Minister said that the Scottish Government is looking to medically evacuate children suffering from injuries caused by Israel's ongoing genocide in [[Gaza]], but that this "requires the support of the UK Government". Over the weekend, the First Minister said he was "extremely disappointed" as he was yet to receive a response from Starmer, two weeks after writing to him.
Business Recorder
3 days ago
- Politics
- Business Recorder
Gaza civil defence says Israeli fire kills 93 aid seekers
GAZA CITY: Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on crowds of Palestinians trying to collect humanitarian aid in the war-torn Palestinian territory on Sunday, killing 93 people and wounding dozens more. Eighty were killed as truckloads of aid arrived in the north, while nine others were reported shot near an aid point close to Rafah in the south, where dozens of people lost their lives just 24 hours earlier. Four were killed near another aid site in Khan Yunis, also in the south, agency spokesman Mahmud Basal told AFP. The UN World Food Programme said its 25-truck convoy carrying food aid 'encountered massive crowds of hungry civilians which came under gunfire' near Gaza City, soon after it crossed from Israel and cleared checkpoints. Israel's military disputed the death toll and said soldiers had fired warning shots 'to remove an immediate threat posed to them' as thousands gathered near Gaza City. Deaths of civilians seeking aid have become a regular occurrence in Gaza, with the authorities blaming Israeli fire as crowds facing chronic shortages of food and other essentials flock in huge numbers to aid centres. The UN said earlier this month that nearly 800 aid-seekers had been killed since late May, including on the routes of aid convoys. Like 'hunting animals' In Gaza City, Qasem Abu Khater, 36, told AFP he had rushed to try to get a bag of flour but instead found a desperate crowd of thousands and 'deadly overcrowding and pushing'. 'The tanks were firing shells randomly at us and Israeli sniper soldiers were shooting as if they were hunting animals in a forest,' he added. 'Dozens of people were martyred right before my eyes and no one could save anyone.' The WFP condemned violence against civilians seeking aid as 'completely unacceptable'. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify tolls and details provided by the agency and other parties. The army says it works to avoid harm to civilians, and that this month it issued new instructions to its troops on the ground 'following lessons learned' from a spate of similar incidents. Israel on Sunday withdrew the residency permit of head of the OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) office in Israel, Jonathan Whittall, who has repeatedly condemned the humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, in a post to X, accused him of spreading lies about the war in Gaza. Papal call The war was sparked by Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, leading to the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed 58,895 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. Separately, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday expressed his regret to Pope Leo XIV after what he described as a 'stray' munition killed three people sheltering at the Holy Family Church in Gaza City. At the end of the Angelus prayer on Sunday, the pope slammed the 'barbarity' of the Gaza war and called for peace, days after the Israeli strike on the territory's only Catholic church. The strike was part of the 'ongoing military attacks against the civilian population and places of worship in Gaza', he added. The Catholic Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, held mass at the Gaza church on Sunday after travelling to the devastated territory in a rare visit on Friday. 'Expanding' operations Most of Gaza's population of more than two million people have been displaced at least once during the war and there have been repeated evacuation calls across large parts of the coastal enclave. On Sunday morning, the Israeli military told residents and displaced Palestinians sheltering in the Deir el-Balah area to move south immediately due to imminent operations in the area. Gaza civil defence says Israeli fire kills 26 near two aid centres Whole families were seen carrying what few belongings they have on packed donkey carts heading south. 'They threw leaflets at us and we don't know where we are going and we don't have shelter or anything,' one man told AFP. The displacement order was 'another devastating blow to the already fragile lifelines keeping people alive across the Gaza Strip', the UN OCHA said on Sunday. According to the aid agency, 87.8 percent of Gaza is now under displacement orders or within Israeli militarized zones, leaving '2.1 million civilians squeezed into a fragmented 12 per cent of the Strip, where essential services have collapsed.' The army's latest announcement prompted concern from families of hostages held since October 7, 2023 that the Israeli offensive could harm their loved ones. Delegations from Israel and group Hamas have spent the last two weeks in indirect talks on a proposed 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and the release of 10 living hostages. Of the 251 hostages taken during Hamas's 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
Roya News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Roya News
Gaza civil defence says 'Israeli' fire kills 93 aid seekers
Gaza's civil defence agency said 'Israeli' forces opened fire on crowds of Palestinians trying to collect humanitarian aid in the war-torn Palestinian territory on Sunday, killing 93 people and wounding dozens more. Eighty were killed as truckloads of aid arrived in the north, while nine others were reported shot near an aid point close to Rafah in the south, where dozens of people lost their lives just 24 hours earlier. Four were killed near another aid site in Khan Yunis, also in the south, agency spokesman Mahmoud Basal told AFP. The UN World Food Programme said its 25-truck convoy carrying food aid "encountered massive crowds of hungry civilians which came under gunfire" near Gaza City, soon after it crossed from 'Israel' and cleared checkpoints. 'Israel's' military disputed the death toll and said soldiers had fired warning shots "to remove an immediate threat posed to them" as thousands gathered near Gaza City. Deaths of civilians seeking aid have become a regular occurrence in Gaza, with the authorities blaming 'Israeli' fire as crowds facing chronic shortages of food and other essentials flock in huge numbers to aid centres. The UN said earlier this month that nearly 800 aid-seekers had been killed since late May, including on the routes of aid convoys. The WFP condemned violence against civilians seeking aid as "completely unacceptable". 'Israel' on Sunday withdrew the residency permit of head of the OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) office in 'Israel', Jonathan Whittall, who has repeatedly condemned the humanitarian conditions in Gaza. 'Israeli' Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, in a post to X, accused him of spreading lies about the war in Gaza. 'Expanding' operations Most of Gaza's population of more than two million people have been displaced at least once during the war and there have been repeated evacuation calls across large parts of the coastal enclave. On Sunday morning, the 'Israeli' military told residents and displaced Palestinians sheltering in the Deir el-Balah area to move south immediately due to imminent operations in the area. Whole families were seen carrying what few belongings they have on packed donkey carts heading south. The displacement order was "another devastating blow to the already fragile lifelines keeping people alive across the Gaza Strip", the UN OCHA said on Sunday. According to the aid agency, 87.8 percent of Gaza is now under displacement orders or within 'Israeli' militarized zones, leaving "2.1 million civilians squeezed into a fragmented 12 per cent of the Strip, where essential services have collapsed."
