At least 32 people were killed and more than 100 injured on Saturday morning when Israeli troops opened fire on crowds of Palestinians seeking food from two aid distribution hubs in southern Gaza, according to witnesses and hospital officials.
People on the scene described it as “a massacre”, and claimed Israel Defense Forces fired “indiscriminately” at the groups of Palestinians – reported to be mostly young men – who were making their way towards the hubs run by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Most of the deaths, which a civil defence agency spokesperson, Mahmud Bassal, attributed to “Israeli gunfire”, occurred in the Teina area, about two miles from a GHF aid distribution centre east of Khan Younis.
Medical sources told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that many of the wounded are in a serious condition, while witnesses at the scene said many of the dead and injured were children and teenagers.
The Nasser hospital in Khan Younis received 25 bodies, as well as dozens of wounded people, while nine others were killed near a centre north-west of Rafah, the civil defence agency said.
Dr Atef al-Hout, director of Nasser hospital, described the situation as “an unprecedented number of casualties in a very short time”, warning that the actual death toll could be higher.
“We’re unable to provide adequate medical treatment as we lack equipment, medicine and personnel,” he told Haaretz.
In a statement, GHF, which was set up to replace the traditional UN-led aid distribution system in Gaza, said there were no incidents at or near its sites. It said the reported Israeli shootings occurred far from its sites and hours before they opened. “We have repeatedly warned aid seekers not to travel to our sites overnight and early morning hours,” the group said.
The Israeli military said it had fired “warning shots” near Rafah after a group of suspects approached troops and ignored calls to keep their distance. It said it was investigating reports of casualties, but noted the incident occurred overnight when the distribution centre was closed.
Mahmoud Mokeimar told Associated Press reporters he was walking with masses of people – mostly young men – towards the food hub. Troops fired warning shots as the crowds advanced, before opening fire on the marching people.
“It was a massacre,” he said. “The occupation opened fire at us indiscriminately.” He said he managed to escape but saw at least three motionless bodies lying on the ground, and many other wounded people fleeing.
Akram Aker said troops fired machine guns mounted on tanks and drones. He said the shooting happened between 5am and 6am.
“They encircled us and started firing directly at us,” he told AP. He said he saw many casualties lying on the ground.
Sana’a al-Jaberi, a 55-year-old woman, said she saw many dead and wounded as she fled the area.
“We shouted: ‘food, food’, but they didn’t talk to us. They just opened fire,” she said.
Four other witnesses also accused Israeli troops of opening fire, according to the news agency AFP.
“They started shooting at us and we lay down on the ground. Tanks and Jeeps came, soldiers got out of them and started shooting,” said Tamer Abu Akar, 24.
Elsewhere, the civil defence agency reported that an Israeli strike on a house near Nuseirat, in central Gaza, killed 12 people, the latest in a series of deadly bombardments.
More than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza are living through a catastrophic humanitarian crisis and the entire population is at risk of famine, according to food security experts, while distribution at the GHF sites has been described as “lethal chaos”.
Last Wednesday, 19 people were killed in a crush near a GHF hub and one person was stabbed. GHF blamed the incident on Hamas, describing it as “a calculated provocation, part of a pattern of targeted efforts by Hamas and its allies to dismantle our life-saving operations”.
Dr Mohamed Saker, the head of Nasser’s nursing department, told AP that most of the people who died on Saturday were shot in the head and chest, and that some were placed in the already overwhelmed intensive care unit.
“The situation is difficult and tragic,” he said, adding that the hospital desperately needed medical supplies to treat the daily flow of casualties.
Israeli and Hamas negotiators have been discussing an interim truce in the Gaza war, which would see 10 surviving hostages and the bodies of 18 others returned to Israel in exchange for the release of a number of Palestinians.
On Friday, President Donald Trump said at a dinner that 10 hostages would “very shortly” be released from Gaza, but provided no further details.
Speaking to lawmakers at the White House, Trump – who has been predicting for weeks that a US-led ceasefire and hostage-release deal was imminent – said: “We got most of the hostages back. We’re going to have another 10 coming very shortly, and we hope to have that finished quickly.”
