At least 51 Palestinians were killed and more than 200 wounded in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip after a fierce attack by Israeli forces, who, after carrying out an aerial bombardment, then opened fire on the crowd waiting to receive humanitarian aid.

As reported by the Associated Press, citing the health ministry of Gaza and Nasser Hospital, the incident occurred on Tuesday morning, while Palestinians had gathered to receive food from UN and private company trucks.

Eyewitnesses said Israeli fighter jets first struck a house near the distribution point. Immediately afterwards, Israeli military forces opened fire with heavy weapons and even tanks on the gathered crowd. Israel has not made an official statement on the incident.

“It was a massacre”

“It was a massacre,” said eyewitness Yusuf Nofal, stressing that the soldiers kept firing even as civilians tried to escape. “I saw many people lying motionless and bleeding on the ground.” A similar testimony was given by Mohamed Abu Keshfa, who spoke of an explosion, continuous gunfire and tank shelling: “I survived by a miracle,” he said.

The victims were taken to Nasser hospital in Han Younis, where dozens of relatives were found looking for their loved ones. “We don’t want flour, we don’t want food, we don’t want anything. Why did they shoot our children? Aren’t we human?”
Samaher Mekdan, who was looking for two brothers and a nephew, said.

However, this is not the first time Israeli forces have been accused of shooting at civilians gathered at food distribution points. Since the opening of the new centers, which are supported by the US and Israel, dozens of people have been killed and hundreds injured. The Israeli military has admitted that in some incidents, it has fired warning shots when civilians approached the military positions in a “suspicious manner.”

Humanitarian aid distribution is problematic

The new food distribution network is operated through a private contractor under the name Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. According to Israel, it is aimed at preventing the misuse of humanitarian aid by Hamas. For their part, the United Nations and major humanitarian organizations reject the system, saying it is insufficient for the growing needs of the population and violates humanitarian principles by allowing Israel to control who receives the aid.

As the UN warns of the risk of famine in Gaza, food distribution remains problematic. Despite UN missions over the past 20 months, the easing of the blockade between March and May failed to reverse the humanitarian crisis. Military restrictions, insecurity, and looting make it difficult to distribute even the aid that has been approved.