At least 31 Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded early Sunday as they were on their way to a humanitarian aid distribution site in the southern Gaza Strip, multiple witnesses and Hamas authorities said.
The Israel Defense Forces issued a vague statement, saying that “at this time, we are unaware of injuries caused by IDF troops’ fire within the [humanitarian aid] distribution site” in Rafah, adding that “the matter is still under review.”
When asked for clarification, the IDF did not explicitly deny that there had been gunfire, but said it was unaware of any injuries “within” the aid site. Witnesses said Israeli forces fired on crowds around a kilometer away from the aid site hours before the distribution took place.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the US- and Israel-backed body in charge of the aid distribution, insisted that the “aid was again distributed today without incident.”
GHF published videos ostensibly showing that no Palestinian civilians were shot at the site. “Reports of injuries and fatalities are completely false and fabricated,” the organization said, attaching around 15 minutes of footage from the distribution site after dawn.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, whose tolls cannot be verified, said 31 people were killed and 170 others were wounded in the incident in Rafah on Sunday. Another person was killed and over a dozen were injured at an aid distribution site in the Netzarim corridor area, Palestinian media reported.
The Associated Press cited eyewitnesses as saying that the incident in Rafah occurred before dawn, as thousands marched toward the aid site. Israeli troops had ordered them to disperse and come back later, and as the crowds arrived at a roundabout around a kilometer away at 3 a.m., the IDF opened fire, the witnesses said.
An AP reporter arrived at a field hospital at around 6 a.m. and saw dozens of wounded, including women and children. The reporter also saw crowds of people returning from the distribution point. Some were carrying boxes of aid, but most appeared to be coming back empty-handed.
Amid coverage in international media of the incident, former prime minister Naftali Bennett slammed the government for the fact that it did not provide any information, aside from the IDF’s vague statement.
He said international media were reporting a “huge lie.”
Israel has no public diplomacy. The matter is not being managed,” Bennett said.
GHF has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones. The IDF has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions.
GHF said Sunday that it had distributed 4.7 million meals at three distribution sites in southern and central Gaza over the past six days. But its classification of meals is based on boxes of dry food products that still require cooking equipment or community kitchens, which are very limited throughout the Strip after nearly 20 months of devastating conflict.
Under pressure from allies, Israel last month begun allowing some humanitarian aid into Gaza after blocking all food, medicine, fuel and other goods from entering since March 2, a move Jerusalem said was aimed at pressuring Hamas into releasing hostages.
The UN and other aid groups have refused to participate in the GHF system, saying it violates humanitarian principles. They say it puts aid under Israel’s control, to use to carry out its announced plans to move Gaza’s entire population to the south. They also say it cannot meet the massive needs of the population and endangers those seeking food.
Israel demanded the new system, saying it is needed to prevent Hamas from siphoning off supplies, as it accuses the terror group of regularly doing. UN agencies say their mechanisms already prevent significant diversion. Still, there is footage of aid being stolen by gunmen in Gaza, and one former hostage has testified that Hamas would eat from the stolen aid.