Gaza’s Ministry of Health says at least 73 Palestinians killed attempts to obtain humanitarian aid
At least 73 people were killed when they tried to obtain assistance at sites across Gaza on Sunday.
The Israeli military said soldiers fired fire at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians in northern Gaza, posing a threat and were aware of some casualties. But it said Gaza’s convoy reports were much higher than the military’s preliminary investigation.
The military added that it sought to facilitate the entry of aid and accused Hamas militants of inciting chaos and endangering civilians.
According to the northern part of the Gaza ministry, the largest toll is in the northern part of the territory, where at least 67 Palestinians were killed while trying to enter North Gaza through aid through the transit with Israel’s Zikim.
The hospital said more than 150 people were injured, some of whom were in critical condition. According to the Kuwait Professional Field Hospital, seven Palestinians were killed while sheltering tents in Khan Younis’ tent.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health said more than 70 Palestinians were killed on Sunday while trying to get aid at locations across Gaza.
It is unclear whether they were killed by Israeli troops or armed gangs or both. But some witnesses said Israel’s military forces fired at the crowd.
The murder in northern Gaza did not occur near the aid allocation point related to the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF), a U.S. and Israel-backed group that handed over food packaging to Palestinians. Witnesses and health workers say hundreds of people were killed by Israeli fires while trying to enter the organization’s distribution sites.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military issued a new evacuation warning in central Gaza on Sunday, one of the few areas where the military rarely operates with ground forces.
The evacuation cuts the access between the city of Deir Al-Balah and the city of southern Rafah and the narrow enclave of Khan Younis.
The news comes as Israel and Hamas have been holding ceasefire talks in Qatar, but international mediators say there is no breakthrough.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stressed that expanding Israeli military operations in Gaza will force Hamas to negotiate, but negotiations have been stalled for months.
Earlier this month, the Israeli military said it controlled more than 65% of the Gaza Strip.
According to a new Amnesty International report, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israel-backed group, took over the aid allocation in Gaza a month ago – using a militarized aid mechanism that allows Israel to use hunger as a weapon of war and impose genocide on genocide. Amnesty International’s Budour Hassan said ground-based people would receive aid acquisitions as “painful” efforts.
Cut off access
The Gaza region under the evacuation order is where many international organizations trying to allocate assistance are located.
A UN official who asked not to be named said the UN has been contacting Israeli authorities to clarify whether Sunday’s evacuation order was included in Sunday’s evacuation order.
The official said UN facilities were exempt from evacuation orders in previous circumstances. The evacuation notice covers an area from the previously evacuated area to the coast and will seriously hinder the aid groups and civilian movements in Gaza.
Israeli military spokesman Avicay Adraee warned that the army would attack militants. He called on residents, including those living in tents, to go to the Muwasi area, a desolate tent camp on the southern bank of Gaza, where the Israeli military designated a humanitarian zone.
Gaza has a population of more than 2 million Palestinians in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.
Hamas triggered a 21-month war, with militants attacking southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking hostages of 251 people. Fifty left, but less than half were considered alive.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, the subsequent Israeli military offensive killed more than 58,000 Palestinians. The ministry is part of the Hamas government, but the United Nations and other international organizations regard it as the most reliable source of data for casualties.
The grassroots organization hostage family forum, representing many hostage families, condemned the evacuation announcement and asked Netanyahu and the Israeli military to explain what they hoped to achieve in the Israeli region in central Gaza, accusing Israel of not having a clear plan of war.
“Enough! The Israeli people overwhelmingly want to end the battle and reach a comprehensive agreement that will return all hostages,” the forum said. On Saturday night, tens of thousands of protesters marched in Tel Aviv to branches of the U.S. Embassy, proving the end of the war.
Humanitarian disaster growth
Ambulances in front of three large Gaza hospitals simultaneously issued an alarm on Sunday morning, calling for clarification of the territory’s hunger crisis. The Ministry of Health posted pictures of doctors on social media about malnourished children and paper signs of drugs lacking.
Ministry of Health spokesman Zaher al-Wahidi said at least children under the age of 9 and under five have died of malnutrition since the aid entry lockdown imposed by Israel in March.
He explained that tracking deaths from hunger is difficult because some people may suffer from other medical conditions that may worsen when they are severely hunger.
In northern Gaza, Abu Selmiyah, director of the Party Organization Hospital, said the hospital recorded 79 deaths from malnutrition in the past month.
Israeli bombing continues to blow up the Gaza Strip. A large explosion in northern Gaza can be seen in Israel as smoke plumes flow into the sky.
