GHF denies reports of violence at aid sites after announcing temp. site closure
All aid distribution sites in the Gaza Strip were temporarily closed Friday morning due to excessive crowding, which made it unsafe to proceed, The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation announced Friday afternoon in an emailed statement following an earlier notice on Facebook.
GHF said that all media reports of disruptions are inaccurate and that aid was distributed peacefully and without incident. "At no point did violence occur," the organization said.
"Our official Facebook page is a mechanism to communicate with the people of Gaza to ensure their safe passage," GHF added.
"We would like to inform you that all sites of aid distribution are closed. Please stay away from distribution sites for your safety," GHF said in the earlier Facebook post.
"Opening date will be announced on this page."
IDF Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on X on Friday that Palestinians would have 'free movement' to aid distribution sites between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., but warned that outside those hours the area would be a 'closed military zone' and movement would pose a significant risk to life.
The GHF opened two sites in southern Gaza on Thursday after closing all of its centers the previous day in the wake of shootings in the vicinity of its operations. It has so far operated four distribution centers.
Palestinians collecting aid from GHF sites told Reuters that there was no clear distribution system, describing the process as disorganized and chaotic. Footage released this week by the organization has shown similar scenes at one of its sites.
GHF halted distributions on Wednesday and said it was pressing Israeli forces to improve civilian safety beyond the perimeter of its operations after dozens of Palestinians were shot dead near the Rafah site over three consecutive days.
The Israeli military said on Sunday and Monday that its soldiers had fired warning shots. On Tuesday, it said, forces also fired warning shots before firing towards Palestinians that it said were advancing towards troops. GHF has said that aid was safely handed out from its sites without any incident.
This is a developing story.
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