Egypt Daily News – Palestinian officials said that Israeli fire killed at least 44 Palestinians on Friday in Gaza, and that many of them died while trying to obtain food. Meanwhile, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that the Strip is facing a man-made drought as water networks collapse.
Health authorities in Gaza reported that at least 25 people were killed by Israeli fire while they were waiting for aid trucks south of the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza.
When Reuters asked the Israeli army about the incident, it said its soldiers fired warning shots at individuals they suspected were armed and approaching them within a crowd.
The army said in a statement that an Israeli aircraft “struck the suspects and killed them,” adding that it is aware others were injured in the incident and that an investigation is underway.
In a separate incident, medics in Gaza said that at least 19 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes across the Strip, including 12 in a house in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, raising the total death toll for the day to at least 44.
In a statement today, Hamas accused Israel of systematically targeting Palestinians seeking food aid throughout the Strip.
Israel denies this, accusing Hamas of stealing food aid, which the group also denies.
Drought in Gaza
Meanwhile, UNICEF warned today that Gaza is facing a drought.
James Elder, a spokesperson for UNICEF, told journalists in Geneva, “Children will start dying of thirst… only 40% of drinking water production facilities are still operating.”
He added that the current levels are “well below emergency standards regarding drinking water for Gaza’s population.”
UNICEF also stated that there has been a 50% increase in the number of children between six months and five years old admitted to hospitals for treatment of malnutrition between April and May in Gaza, and that half a million people are suffering from hunger.
Food aid
Elder, who recently visited Gaza, said he heard many testimonies from women and children who were injured while trying to obtain food aid, including a small child who was hit by a tank shell and later died from his injuries.
He explained that the lack of clarity on the operation times of distribution points, some of which are located in combat zones, is causing incidents with heavy civilian casualties.
Witnesses told Reuters that the road near Netzarim has become dangerous since the start of the new aid distribution system supported by the United States and managed by the Humanitarian Gaza Foundation. Desperate Gaza residents head to a specific area late at night in hopes of getting any amount of relief supplies scheduled for distribution after dawn.
This road is also used by aid trucks sent by the UN and relief organizations, and people gather there hoping to grab food supplies from the trucks.
UNICEF said that the way the Humanitarian Gaza Foundation operates “makes an already dire situation worse.”
On Thursday, at least 70 people were killed by Israeli gunfire and military shelling, including 12 who attempted to approach a site operated by the Humanitarian Gaza Foundation in central Gaza. The Red Cross told Reuters that “the vast majority” of those injured who arrived at its field hospital during these deadly incidents said they were wounded while trying to obtain aid at or near distribution points.
The Red Cross reported that from May 27 to Thursday, it received 1,874 people with gunshot wounds.
