Israeli fire kills dozens seeking aid in Gaza, hospital says
The Israeli military said it had fired warning shots at suspects who approached its troops after they did not heed calls to stop, about a kilometre away from an aid distribution site that was not active at the time.
Gaza resident Mohammed al-Khalidi said he was in the group approaching the site and heard no warnings before the firing began at dawn on Saturday.
"We thought they came out to organise us so we can get aid, suddenly [I] saw the Jeeps coming from one side, and the tanks from the other and started shooting at us," he said.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed group that runs the aid site, said there were no incidents or fatalities there on Saturday and that it has repeatedly warned people not to travel to its distribution points in the dark.
"The reported IDF [Israel Defense Forces] activity resulting in fatalities occurred hours before our sites opened and our understanding is most of the casualties occurred several kilometres away from the nearest GHF site," it said.
The Israeli military said it was reviewing the incident.
GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians.
Hamas denies the accusation.
The UN has called the GHF's model unsafe and a breach of humanitarian impartiality standards, which GHF denies.
On Tuesday, the UN rights office in Geneva said it had recorded at least 875 killings in the past six weeks in the vicinity of aid sites and food convoys in Gaza — the majority of them close to GHF distribution points.
Most of those deaths were caused by gunfire that locals have blamed on the Israeli military.
The military has acknowledged that civilians were harmed, saying that Israeli forces had been issued new instructions with "lessons learned".
At least 50 more people were killed in other Israeli attacks across Gaza on Saturday, health officials said, including one strike that killed the head of the Hamas-run police force in Nuseirat in central Gaza and 11 of his family members.
The Israeli military said it had struck militants' weapon depots and sniping posts in a few locations in the enclave.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza.
The Israeli military campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed about 58,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population and plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis, leaving much of the territory in ruins.
Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Doha aimed at reaching a US-proposed 60-day ceasefire and a hostage deal mediated by Egypt and Qatar, though there has been no sign of any imminent breakthrough.
At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza are believed to still be alive.
Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan was kidnapped from his kibbutz home and is held by Hamas, urged Israel's leaders to make a deal with the militant group.
"An entire people wants to bring all 50 hostages home and end the war," Ms Zangauker said in a statement outside Israel's defence headquarters in Tel Aviv.
"My Matan is alone in the tunnels," she said.
"He has no more time."
Reuters
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Australian liver surgeon Russell Strong made pioneered live transplant procedures in the 1980s
Photo shows Ukraine Drone Strike: Screengrab shows a small drone hovering above a truck's trailer with a plume of smoke in the background. Has Video Duration: 1 minute 41 seconds . 1 m 41 s


9 News
17 hours ago
- 9 News
Powerful aftershocks hit Russia after Earthquake
Powerful aftershocks have hit Russia's far eastern coast after initial huge quake. Added 22 minutes ago Powerful aftershocks have hit Russia's far eastern coast after initial huge quake. 22 minutes ago 01:06 The first tsunami waves have hit the coasts of Russia and Japan, and have been detected by ocean buoys of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. 2 hours ago 00:45 Several tsunami warnings have been issued for Hawaii, Alaska and Russia after an 8.7 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Russia. 3 hours ago 00:21 Clinton Brink and Cristen Brink have been identified as the victims of a double homicide at Devil's Den State Park in Arkansas. 5 hours ago 01:48 The UK Prime Minister has pledged to recognise a state of Palestine in September, unless the Israeli government addresses the crisis in Gaza. 9 hours ago 02:17 New York authorities say a gunman who shot dead four people was targeting the headquarters of the US National Football League. 9 hours ago 02:18 US President Donald Trump has thrown down the gauntlet to both Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu, during a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland. a day ago 02:08 US President Donald Trump has hinted at imposing a new tariff of up to 20 per cent on Australia and other nations. a day ago 00:31 Innocent bystanders quickly came to the aid of people attacked in the stabbing frenzy at a Walmart in Michigan. a day ago 02:59 Multiple people, including a police officer, have been killed in a shooting outside a corporate office building in Manhattan, New York. a day ago 01:38 Four people were shot dead inside an office building in Manhattan before the shooter turned the gun on himself. a day ago 03:05 In an Australian exclusive, Jeffrey Epstein's brother Mark spoke to Today and 9News, making a number of shock claims. a day ago 02:16 Two people have been shot dead and others injured in a shooting outside a casino in Reno, US. a day ago 00:17

News.com.au
17 hours ago
- News.com.au
Alleged Miznon restaurant protester Antwany Arnold refused bail
A man who allegedly threw cauliflower outside an Israeli restaurant and chanted 'death, death to the IDF' in the Melbourne CBD has been refused bail. Antwany Arnold, 50, is alleged to have committed assault, affray, riotous behaviour and criminal damage after allegedly throwing food and chairs outside Miznon restaurant on Hardware Lane on July 4. Mr Arnold, who was described in court as a 'familiar face' in Melbourne's pro-Palestinian protest movement, returned to the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday as magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz refused to grant him bail. The accused man reacted by clapping his hands in a slow exaggerated manner as he beamed in to court from the Metropolitan Remand Centre. Handing down her decision, Ms Mykytowycz found Mr Arnold represented a 'real and ongoing risk' to the welfare of the community, noting he had a history of not complying with bail conditions. She said the father-of-five had already allegedly breached his bail conditions 'more than once' by attending a protest in the CBD, and she was not satisfied that he would follow his imposed bail conditions. The court was told the accused man had been arrested on July 8 over his alleged involvement in a protest outside the Israeli restaurant, which was targeted by 12 to 15 protesters in the evening of July 4. In CCTV of the incident, played in court last week, protesters gathered in the outdoor dining area, chanting slogans including 'death, death to the IDF', 'out, out, Israel out' and 'Israel is a terrorist state'. Ms Mykytowycz told the court it was alleged Mr Arnold was the person chanting on a microphone at the rear of the group and threw food and upturned chairs and tables after patrons had left. At one point footage allegedly showed a second protester sticking their finger in a diner's food, 'a frankly repugnant act', Ms Mykytowycz said. 'You risk alienating the very community amongst which you wish to be heard – arguably you already have,' Ms Mykytowycz said. 'Ultimately, a court will be required in each instance to assess the general character of your utterances and behaviour. This will also include an assessment of whether your behaviour on each occasion constitutes a lawful protest.' During a hearing last week, Mr Arnold's lawyer Tim Hutton told the court that his client had a long history of involvement in the pro-Palestinian protest movement in Melbourne. He said the alleged offending was not driven by anti-Semitism but a 'most passionate condemnation' of the Israel Defence Forces and their actions in Gaza. 'It is a condemnation of the atrocities and war crimes they've committed,' Mr Hutton said. 'That chant is not specifically calling for the murder of individual IDF soldiers but calling for the end of that organisation.' Mr Hutton flagged that the head charge of affray would be contested. Mr Arnold was remanded into custody and will return to court next month.