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UPI
an hour ago
- Politics
- UPI
Aid agencies say mass starvation stalking Gaza, demand end to blockade
Palestinians wait their turn for a hot meal at a camp for displaced people in Khan Younis in southern Gaza on July 6 File Photo by Anas Deeb/UPI | License Photo July 23 (UPI) -- Mass starvation is spreading across Gaza as a result of Israel's blockade on aid entering the Palestinian enclave, 111 international aid, human rights and religious groups said Wednesday in an appeal to the global community to act. The agencies, including Save the Children, Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, Caritas and Amnesty International, said in a joint open letter that colleagues and those they served in Gaza were "wasting away" due to malnutrition. "As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families. With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organizations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes," the letter reads. The groups said doctors were reporting record rates of acute malnutrition, particularly in children and the elderly, and adults dropping in the streets from hunger and dehydration as the volume of aid distributions dwindled to just 28 trucks a day, on average, to feed 2 million people. "Exactly two months since the Israeli government-controlled scheme, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, began operating, more than 100 organizations are sounding the alarm, urging governments to act: open all land crossings; restore the full flow of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items, and fuel through a principled, U.N.-led mechanism; end the siege, and agree to a cease-fire now," they wrote. Israel said there was plenty of food getting into Gaza and blamed the U.N. and other aid agencies for failing to get it to the people who needed it. Sharing aerial footage on X that purported to show a staging post inside Gaza stocked with very significant volumes of aid, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said the depot contained 950 trucks worth of aid "waiting for international organizations to pick up and distribute to Gazan civilians." "This is after Israel facilitated the aid entry into Gaza," said Shoshani. COGAT, the Israeli government agency tasked with implementing civilian policy in Gaza and the West Bank, boiled down the issue to what it called a "collection bottleneck." "The collection bottleneck remains the main obstacle to maintaining a consistent flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, despite Israel's proactive efforts to expand the volume of aid trucks entering the area," it said in a social media post. The aid agencies acknowledged the presence of many tons of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items and fuel, but said it was lying untouched because Israeli restrictions made it virtually impossible for them to access or deliver it. They said the Israeli government's "restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death." "The U.N.-led humanitarian system has not failed, it has been prevented from functioning," the aid groups said. However, Israeli Army Radio quoted COGAT as saying Hamas was cynically exploiting a highly emotive issue to gain leverage in ongoing negotiations to end the conflict by "conducting a false campaign regarding the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip." Israel upended the traditional U.N.-led system developed over decades that delivered aid to where people were in favour of a new mechanism run by a U.S. non-profit under which Palestinians must collect aid from a handful of distribution hubs in active military zones. Jerusalem said the scheme is aimed at preventing aid from being stolen by Hamas and resold to fund its military operations against Israel. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said on its Facebook page that as of noon Tuesday, 1,026 people had been killed and 6,563 injured trying to access food at GHF sites in Gaza in the eight weeks since the scheme began operating May 27.
UPI
4 days ago
- Health
- UPI
32 killed near Gaza aid sites, Hamas-run Health Ministry says
A Gazan child receives a food ration in Gaza City on Saturday after 32 Gazans reportedly were shot and killed near humanitarian aid stations in southern Gaza. Photo by Haitham Imad/EPA July 19 (UPI) -- The Israeli military killed an estimated 32 Gazans near two aid distribution sites on Saturday morning, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Israeli soldiers fired on Gazans near aid distribution sites that are located near Khan Younis and Rafah in southern Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, the BBC reported. Israel Defense Forces told the BBC its troops fired warning shots to deter "suspects" from approaching them hours before the opening of the aid sites, which are operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The IDF in a statement said it positioned its troops about 1,000 yards from an aid distribution site before it opened in Rafah, The New York Times reported. The IDF troops fired warning shots after people approached them and did not stop when told to do so, the statement said. Officials with the GHF said there were "no incidents at or near any of our aid distribution sites today," the Times reported. GHF officials said Israeli military activity occurred several miles away from its aid distribution sites and "hours before our sites opened." The United States and Israel created the GHF and use private contractors to protect its operations to stop Hamas from stealing the aid and depriving Gazans from accessing it, according to Israeli and U.S. officials, the BBC reported. The GHF told the BBC the Gaza Health Ministry commonly reports "false and misleading" casualty numbers. According to the Times, the IDF has shot at crowds of Gazans at or near aid sites during recent months, however the GHF said that Hamas has attacked civilians seeking aid and encourages civil unrest to disrupt aid distribution. The reported killings occurred as cease-fire talks continue between Hamas and Israel. Palestinians in Gaza seek aid amid drone strike Palestinians inspect what is left of their tents after it was struck by an Israeli drone. The wounded were transported to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, on Sunday. Photo by Anas Deeb/UPI | License Photo
UPI
01-07-2025
- Politics
- UPI
Aid, human rights groups call for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's closure
Palestinian children eat a hot meal of beans provided by a charity-run food kitchen at a refugee camp in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. File photo by Anas Deeb/UPI | License Photo July 1 (UPI) -- A group of more than 100 human rights groups and international aid charities called for an Israel-U.S.-backed mechanism for distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza to be scrapped after at least 500 Palestinians were killed and 4,000 injured in its first month of operation. Oxfam, Save the Children, Medecins Sans Frontieres, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Amnesty International and other NGOs operating in Gaza in a joint statement Monday called for immediate action to end the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation operation and revert to the U.N.-led distribution system that existed prior to Israel's blockade of humanitarian aid. The groups said under the GHF scheme, four military-run distribution hubs had replaced 400 aid distribution points across Gaza that operated during the January to March cease-fire, forcing two million people into "overcrowded, militarized zones where they face daily gunfire and mass casualties while trying to access food and are denied other life-saving supplies." The weeks since the first two centers run by the GHF, which uses armed private contractors to provide security, opened May 27 in Rafah have been some of the deadliest and most violent since the conflict began on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the statement. "Today, Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families. The humanitarian system is being deliberately and systematically dismantled by the Government of Israel's blockade and restrictions, a blockade now being used to justify shutting down nearly all other aid operations in favour of a deadly, military-controlled alternative that neither protects civilians nor meets basic needs. "Experienced humanitarian actors remain ready to deliver life-saving assistance at scale. Yet more than 100 days since Israeli authorities reimposed a near-total blockade on aid and commercial goods, Gaza's humanitarian conditions are collapsing faster than at any point in the past 20 months," the statement said. The groups painted a picture where malnourished civilians were compelled to undertake hours-long journeys on foot through active conflict zones to reach aid hubs, where scenes of chaos ensue as thousands scramble to enter via a single point of access and once inside are left to fight it out for the supplies on offer. Areas around the centers had become killing zones where international humanitarian law was ignored and children were killed or hurt in half of the incidents, with little prospect of receiving emergency medical treatment because Gaza's health care system was "in ruins" and ambulances were unable to reach casualties. GHF denied its centers were killing zones and said it was the victim of an orchestrated "misinformation campaign" aimed at driving it out of Gaza. The casualty figures come from Gaza's Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, but there have been eyewitness reports of people injured and killed after being fired on by Israel Defense Forces, as well as medics treating casualties. Last week, the U.N. Human Rights Office said it had documented at least 410 Palestinians killed by IDF gunfire or shelling while attempting to collect food boxes from food hubs, with the agency saying "a likely war crime" had been committed. It said it was looking into separate reports of a further 93 people killed after approaching the small number of food convoys of the United Nations and other aid providers still operating in Gaza. Israeli media reported Monday that the Israel Defense Forces, which has previously acknowledged firing warning shots in the direction of -- but not at -- crowds gathering near aid distribution centers, had admitted cases of "inaccurate" artillery fire that resulted in casualties and some fatalities. The IDF told the BBC on Monday it was investigating the reports and that "any allegation of a deviation from the law or IDF directives will be thoroughly examined and further action will be taken as necessary." Separately, in a post on X, the IDF said it had "learned lessons," implementing many changes around the aid hubs designed to "ensure safe civilian passage, orderly aid distribution and the continuity of IDF operations." "Troops reorganized the access routes and center -- marking them, installing signs, opening new routes and setting up barriers and checkpoints. Layouts were adjusted to allow visual tracking of remaining aid. "Following previous lessons, the Tel al-Sultan distribution center [in Rafah] was temporarily closed and a new center was established nearby to reduce civilian friction and ensure the safety of IDF soldiers." Israel has said it imposed the original blockade and sought an alternate aid delivery mechanism to prevent Hamas from stealing or misappropriating supplies for its own ends.
UPI
12-06-2025
- Health
- UPI
At least 5 local Gaza Humanitarian Foundation workers killed in ambush
Palestinians wait for their turn at a food kitchen run by a local aid charity in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. File Photo by Anas Deeb/UPI | License Photo June 12 (UPI) -- At least five Palestinians working for the Israel-U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation were killed and several injured after Hamas gunmen allegedly opened fire on a bus bringing them to one of its distribution hubs in southern Gaza. GHF said the workers were among at least two dozen aboard the bus Wednesday night when they were killed west of the town of Khan Younis and that it feared others had been abducted. "We are still gathering facts, but what we know is devastating: there are at least five fatalities, multiple injuries, and fear that some of our team members may have been taken hostage," GHF said in a statement. "We condemn this heinous and deliberate attack in the strongest possible terms," it said, adding that GHF personnel and civilians receiving aid had been repeatedly threatened in recent days. Israel Defense Forces said the incident vindicated its warnings that Hamas was intent on maintaining its stranglehold on the distribution of aid in the territory. "We warned the world however we could: Hamas will stop at nothing to maintain control and prevent the effective delivery of aid. After their numerous attempts at spreading misinformation regarding the centers, intimidating the workers, and instigating violence next to the centers, Hamas chose murder and violence," the IDF said on X. The new system of distributing Gaza humanitarian assistance that bypasses the United Nations and international aid NGO's has been plagued by problems since it began operating May 26. The Hamas-run Health Ministry claimed 223 people have been killed and more than 1,500 injured trying to get to GHF's three designated hubs where food parcels are handed out daily, many of them shot by IDF troops. Israel denies opening fire on civilians, saying Hamas, which was intent on stopping people from accessing aid, was responsible. On Wednesday, a hospital in Khan Younis claimed Israeli forces opened fire near one of the food distribution centers in Rafah, killing 14 people, while 25 were killed near a convoy of aid trucks and another GHF hub in the Netzarim corridor -- a central Israeli military buffer zone that dissects Gaza into two halves -- according to two Gaza City hospitals. The Hamas-run Civil Defence agency again blamed Israeli forces, saying they opened fire but other reports said people were run over by trucks and that drivers and civilians were shot by unidentified Palestinian gunmen. The IDF acknowledged firing toward suspects it said were moving toward its positions but insisted that only warning shots were discharged. Hamas did not immediately comment on the latest incident but on Sunday warned its forces had "full authority and mandate to strike decisively against any entity or individual collaborating with the enemy's plans or with any rogue, criminal, or traitorous elements that violate the law and the traditions of our people." "All agents, thieves, and armed criminal gangs are considered legitimate targets for the resistance and its security apparatus," said the group, which is designated as a terror organisation by the United States, European Union, Britain and most Western countries. GHF's Facebook page announced Thursday that two of its three hubs, in the Tal Sultan neighborhood of Rafah and the "Saudi" district, were closed. It was unclear whether they had been closed after aid parcels had been handed out for the day, or had never opened in the first place. On Wednesday evening, GHF posted a notice on the site, saying both sites would open to distribute boxes of aid at 12 noon, providing detailed instructions on how to get to the sites and urging people to avoid approaching or gathering outside the compounds ahead of time. The new aid distribution system was put in place amid fears of a looming famine in Gaza after Israel imposed an aid blockade in March, saying it was necessary to prevent aid being brought in by the U.N. and international aid charities from being stolen by Hamas.
UPI
03-06-2025
- Health
- UPI
U.N. calls for probe into reports dozens killed at Gaza aid site
Palestinian girls crowd to receive food portions from a charity kitchen in a refugee camp in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Friday, May 30. On Monday, the United Nations called for an investigation into reports that dozens were killed by Israeli forces at such an aid distribution site. Photo by Anas Deeb/UPI | License Photo June 3 (UPI) -- United Nations head Antonio Guterres has called for "an immediate and independent investigation" into reports that Israeli forces shot and killed dozens of Palestinians seeking aid in Gaza over the weekend. "I am appalled by the reports of Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza yesterday. It is unacceptable that Palestinians are risking their lives for food," Guterres, the United Nations' secretary-general, said Monday in a statement. "I call for an immediate and independent investigation into these events and for perpetrators to be held accountable." On Sunday, at least 31 Palestinians were killed and 200 injured when Israel Defense Forces soldiers opened fire on those at an aid station in Rafah, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement. The ministry accused Israel of using the aid centers as "a new mechanism" to conduct mass killings in Gaza amid an acute shortage of medical supplies. Dr. Ahmed Abu Sweid, an Australian doctor who recently arrived in Gaza, said in a recorded statement that they had received civilian casualties at the Nasser Medical Complex, just north of Rafah, on Sunday who were wounded after being told to go to an aid center to collect food. He said the civilians showed up at the medical center with gunshot wounds and shrapnel wounds, most of whom arrived in critical condition, some were dead on arrival due to "target gunshot wounds to the head and thorax. "I've never seen anything like this," he said. Israel has denied responsibility, saying findings from a preliminary investigation show that "the IDF did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site." "The reports are false," Israel said in a statement, while accusing Hamas of doing "everything in its power to undermine food distribution efforts in the Gaza Strip." Israel's foreign ministry rejected Guterres' statement, deriding it for not mentioning Hamas, the militant group it has been at war with in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023. "What a disgrace," the ministry said. "Does the U.N. really care about providing aid to the people in Gaza, or is it more focused on feeding Hamas and its war machine?" Since the war began with Hamas' surprise attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw another 251 kidnapped, Israel has devastated Gaza, killing nearly 54,500 people, mostly women and children.
