Palestinians carry bags containing food and humanitarian aid packages delivered by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-Israeli backed organization, in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. AP
Thousands gathered at the US-Israeli-run food distribution centre starting at 2am, part of a new aid system established by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The United Nations (UN) and humanitarian aid workers say Israel’s deadly three-month-long blockade and 20-month genocidal war have pushed Gaza to the brink of famine.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP: “Israeli tanks fired several times, then around 5:30am intensified their fire, coinciding with heavy drone fire targeting civilians.”
“We transported at least 31 martyrs and about 200 wounded as a result of Israeli tank and drone fire on thousands of citizens... on their way to receive food from the US-Israeli aid centre,” Bassal added.
The attack is the latest in a series of Israeli massacres of Palestinians attempting to obtain desperately needed aid.
On Tuesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported that Israel has killed at least 163 people and wounded 1,495 others in several shootings near GHF-run aid sites located in military zones off-limits to independent media.
The GHF first opened these aid points on 27 May amid growing international condemnation of the worsening humanitarian crisis in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Israel and the US say they set up the new food distribution system to prevent Hamas from diverting humanitarian aid. However, the UN, which operates a long-standing aid system capable of reaching all parts of Gaza, says there is no evidence of any systematic diversion.
UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the new system, arguing that it violates humanitarian principles by allowing Israel to control who receives aid and by forcing Palestinians to relocate to just three operational sites.
Two of these distribution points are in the largely uninhabited southern city of Rafah, which Israel has designated as a military zone.
Israeli forces maintain an outer perimeter around all three hubs, meaning Palestinians must pass near them to reach the aid.
Since the war began in October 2023, Israel’s military has killed nearly 55,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children. The conflict has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90 percent of its population, often multiple times.
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