Gaza’s civil defense agency says at least 34 people were killed by Israeli fire on Saturday, including more than a dozen civilians waiting to collect aid.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that nine people were killed and 181 wounded when Israeli forces opened fire near a northern Gaza border crossing used for aid deliveries. Another six died and 30 were injured after troops targeted civilians at an aid point in central Gaza, he said.
Additional strikes in central Gaza caused multiple casualties, while a drone attack near Khan Yunis killed at least three people. The figures could not be independently verified due to media restrictions and limited access to the territory.
Thousands of Palestinians gather daily at food distribution points, but aid operations have been repeatedly marred by reports of Israeli fire. Severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel persist under Israeli restrictions imposed since the war began nearly two years ago.
The violence comes as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resists growing calls for a ceasefire, vowing instead to launch a major operation to seize Gaza City, which he says aims to “free Gaza from Hamas.” The militant group has condemned the move as a “new war crime.”
According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, more than 61,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel’s offensive began following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that left 1,219 dead in Israel.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that nine people were killed and 181 wounded when Israeli forces opened fire near a northern Gaza border crossing used for aid deliveries. Another six died and 30 were injured after troops targeted civilians at an aid point in central Gaza, he said.
Additional strikes in central Gaza caused multiple casualties, while a drone attack near Khan Yunis killed at least three people. The figures could not be independently verified due to media restrictions and limited access to the territory.
Thousands of Palestinians gather daily at food distribution points, but aid operations have been repeatedly marred by reports of Israeli fire. Severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel persist under Israeli restrictions imposed since the war began nearly two years ago.
The violence comes as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resists growing calls for a ceasefire, vowing instead to launch a major operation to seize Gaza City, which he says aims to “free Gaza from Hamas.” The militant group has condemned the move as a “new war crime.”
According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, more than 61,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel’s offensive began following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that left 1,219 dead in Israel.
