An aid distribution in Gaza turned tragic on Thursday and led to dozens of deaths under circumstances that are still unclear.
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Hamas' health ministry accuses the Israeli army of killing 115 people by firing into a hungry crowd rushing to aid trucks. The Israeli army acknowledged “limited shooting” and claimed that most of the victims died in a “rush.”
Here's what we know about this drama:
A witness told AFP that thousands of hungry people rushed to trucks carrying humanitarian aid near the “Nablus roundabout” on al-Rashid Street in the western Gaza Strip on Thursday morning.
“The soldiers fired on the crowd because people were getting too close to the Israeli tanks,” said the witness, who did not want to be named for security reasons.
AFP
An Israeli military official, for his part, noted that “thousands of people” were involved in an “onset” in which “dozens of Gazans were injured and killed, some of them run over by trucks.”
According to this official, dozens of people then approached “the tanks and the Israeli forces.” “The soldiers fired warning shots in the air and then shot at those who posed a threat,” he admitted, assuring that the shots were “limited.”
Aerial photos released by the Israeli military reportedly show a crowd of Gazans surrounding aid trucks. But the publication of these black and white images without sound raised many questions.
AFP
They do not take into account what happened at the beginning or end of the tragedy, and points appear blacked out or pixelated. In two areas, Israeli military vehicles appeared to be parked near the road where the convoy passed.
The army has not yet responded to AFP's requests for details.
“200 people injured”
According to the Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza, 115 people were shot and more than 750 injured. Hossam Abou Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza City, said all the victims were hit by “bullets and shrapnel from the occupying forces.”
Israeli army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Thursday evening that “dozens of Gazans had been killed or injured.”
A UN team was able to visit Al-Chifa Hospital in Gaza on Friday. AFP images filmed at the hospital show bodies wrapped in white shrouds following this tragedy.
According to Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, this UN team saw “a large number of gunshot wounds.”
AFP
Member of that team, Georgios Petropoulos of the UN Agency for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), stated that Al-Chifa Hospital treated “more than 200 injured” in this tragedy.
“We saw people injured by bullets. We saw amputees and 12-year-old children injured yesterday,” he added.
Since this tragedy, condemnation and calls for a ceasefire have increased around the world, with many countries also calling for an investigation to be launched to shed light on the circumstances.
AFP
US President Joe Biden said Washington would take part in airdrops of humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip “in the coming days” and for the first time. He also mentioned “the possibility of a maritime corridor to transport large quantities of aid.”
Widespread famine
For months, aid workers have been warning of an increasingly desperate situation for the people of Gaza. An OCHA official, Jens Laerke, reiterated on Friday that widespread famine in the Palestinian territory was “almost inevitable.”
The United Nations estimates that 2.2 million of Gaza's 2.4 million residents are at risk of famine, particularly in the northern areas around Gaza City.
AFP
According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), just over 2,300 humanitarian trucks entered the Gaza Strip in February, a decrease of around 50% compared to January. This represents an average of well under 100 trucks per day, compared to about 500 that arrived daily before the war.
According to Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the convoy of 38 trucks that entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing on the Egyptian border was chartered by “private companies.” He did not give any further details.
AFP
The head of the UN Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, emphasized on X (ex-Twitter) that “neither UNRWA nor any other UN agency was involved in this distribution.”
Signs from an NGO called Jamiya al-Umma could be seen on the trucks, but they gave no indication of the convoy's country of origin, as that name is common for organizations in the region.