GAZA CITY: Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on Wednesday on Palestinians waiting to collect humanitarian aid in the northern Gaza Strip, giving a preliminary death toll of 30.
“At least 30 martyrs were killed … waiting for aid north of Gaza City,” civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, adding that more than 300 were wounded.
Mohammed Abu Salmiya, director of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, told AFP his facility received 35 bodies of people killed in the shooting.
The shooting reportedly happened near the coast, about three kilometres (two miles) southwest of the Zikim crossing point for aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip from the north.
The Israeli army told AFP the reports were under review.
The deadly shooting came hours after 14 Palestinians were killed in four other separate incidents in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, three of which occurred near aid distribution sites, the civil defence agency said.
Gaza civil defence says Israeli forces kill 28 people
In two of these incidents, the army said it fired warning shots at people approaching the aid sites.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify tolls and details provided by the agency and other parties.
The Gaza Strip has been in the grip of war for almost 22 months and now, according to a UN-mandated report, its two-million-plus inhabitants are facing an unfolding famine.
The war was triggered by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 60,138 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run government’s health ministry.
Since the weekend, Israel has observed a daytime pause in military operations on secure routes and in built-up areas to facilitate aid delivery and distribution.
The move was announced amid an international outcry over the deepening hunger crisis facing Palestinian civilians.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.