Gaza: More 62 Palestinians killed in Gaza by Israeli fire since dawn on Saturday, most of them were aid seekers, hospital sources in the besieged enclave have told Al Jazeera.
The death toll includes 38 Palestinians seeking aid at distribution sites operated by the controversial United States and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The deaths are the latest killings reported near GHF-operated sites, despite Israel’s announcement last week that it would begin implementing “tactical pauses” in fighting in some areas to allow Palestinians greater access to humanitarian aid.
Israel announced the start of the daily pauses in military operations on July 27. However, 105 Palestinians were killed while seeking food on Wednesday and Thursday alone, the United Nations Human Rights Office in the occupied Palestinian territory said on Friday.
As of Friday, at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed while trying to access aid, according to the human rights office.
Another 169 Palestinians, including 93 children, have died of starvation or malnutrition since the start of Israel’s war in October 2023, according to figures from Gaza’s Ministry of Health.
Palestinians in the enclave have reported numerous cases of Israeli soldiers and American security contractors hired by the GHF deliberately firing on aid seekers in the vicinity of the distribution sites.
Facing growing international condemnation over the conditions in Gaza, Israel has in recent days allowed airdrops of aid into the enclave by countries including Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Spain, Germany and France.
But humanitarian groups, including the UN aid agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, have warned that the airdrops are insufficient and called on Israel to facilitate the free flow of assistance via land.
Gaza’s Government Media Office said that just 36 aid trucks entered the enclave on Saturday, far short of the 600 trucks it said were needed to meet the humanitarian needs of the population.
In Khan Younis, a Palestine Red Crescent Society staffer was killed and three others wounded by an Israeli attack on its headquarters, according to the aid group.
“One Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) staff member was killed and three others injured after Israeli forces targeted the Society’s headquarters in Khan Younis, igniting a fire on the building’s first floor,” the PRCS said in a post on X on Saturday.
