Gaza City: Four Palestinians were shot and killed by Israeli forces on Sunday while attempting to reach a food distribution site in the Netzarim corridor, south of Gaza City. Witnesses and Al-Awda Hospital reported that troops opened fire on a crowd of aid-seekers, who were traveling through the military zone to reach a site run by the U.S. contractor, Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
According to witnesses, the gunfire was “indiscriminate,” striking a crowd of people hundreds of meters from the distribution point. Two men, Mohamed Abed and Aymed Sayyad, stated that the shooting began when a group at the front of the crowd moved toward the site before its scheduled opening time. The GHF, however, denied the incident occurred near its location or as described, while the Israeli military has not yet commented.
The incident comes as Gaza City faces widespread famine after 22 months of war. The Israeli military is reportedly preparing for a new offensive to seize the city, raising fears that it could be destroyed. The humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate, with Gaza’s Health Ministry reporting an additional eight malnutrition-related deaths on Sunday, including one child. This brings the total number of such deaths to 289, with 115 of them being children.
Escalating Tensions and Humanitarian Crisis
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a leading authority on food crises, has stated that famine is now a reality in Gaza City and could soon spread to other southern regions. The humanitarian crisis is fueled by the war and months of Israeli restrictions on the flow of aid, which Israel has denied.
The Palestinian Health Ministry reports that at least 62,686 Palestinians have been killed in the war, including those confirmed dead by a special judicial committee. More than 2,000 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid at distribution points or along convoy routes. The ministry, which is the most reliable source of casualty figures according to the UN and independent experts, states that around half of the dead are women and children.
Residents in the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp, just north of Gaza City, reported heavy overnight explosions, living in constant fear as Israel’s military mobilizes for the potential invasion. Residents who have been displaced multiple times expressed a profound sense of exhaustion and fear that no area, including designated humanitarian zones, is truly safe.
Continued Diplomatic Stalemate
Efforts to negotiate a ceasefire remain stalled. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200, mostly civilians. While many hostages have been released, 50 remain in Gaza, with about 20 believed to be alive.
Hostage families and many Israelis are growing increasingly vocal about the need for a deal to bring everyone home. However, Hamas stated on Sunday that while it agreed to a partial deal and was ready for a comprehensive one, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “rejects all solutions.”