31 dead in Israeli gunfire near aid site
Palestinian rescuers arrive in an ambulance to evacuate injured people after an Israeli drone opened fire on civilian gatherings near an aid distribution point in the central Gaza Strip. PHOTO: AFP
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli gunfire killed at least 31 Palestinians near a US-backed aid distribution site on Sunday.
Israel has faced growing condemnation over the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, where the United Nations has warned the entire population faces the risk of famine after no aid was allowed to enter for more than two months.
Israel recently eased its blockade and introduced a revamped aid mechanism in cooperation with a newly formed US-backed organisation, bypassing the longstanding UN-led system.
The organisation, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), says it has distributed millions of meals since operations began last week, but the rollout has been marked by chaotic scenes at the limited number of distribution centres, as well as reports of casualties from Israeli fire nearby.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that "31 people were killed and more than 176 injured... after Israeli gunfire targeted thousands of civilians near the American aid centre in Rafah", in southern Gaza.
AFP images showed Palestinians transporting bodies on donkey carts near the aid point as others carried away boxes and bags of supplies under the early-morning sun.
Abdullah Barbakh, a 58-year-old Palestinian man, described "chaos" at the site.
"The army opened fire from drones and tanks," he said. "I don't understand why they call people to the aid centres and then open fire on them."
Near another GHF aid centre in central Gaza, AFP images showed rescuers evacuating injured people. Bassal reported one dead and dozens wounded there, again blaming Israeli fire.
Sameh Hamuda, a displaced 33-year-old from northern Gaza, told AFP he had walked from Gaza City and spent the night with relatives near Rafah before heading to the aid centre around 5:00 am to wait among a crowd of people.
"Suddenly quadcopter drones opened fire on the people, and tanks started shooting heavily. Several people were killed right in front of me," he said.
"I ran and survived. Death follows you as long as you're in Gaza."
At Al-Awda hospital in central Gaza, Umm Muhammad Abu Khousa told AFP her son was among those wounded near the other aid centre in Bureij.