In one of the bloodiest incidents in the protracted war in the Gaza Strip, at least 51 people died as Israeli tanks fired into a crowd trying to get aid from trucks.
Dozens of bodies were seen in videos lying in the street in Khan Younis in the war-torn region.
Israel has acknowledged the incident, saying it regrets the loss of civilian lives.
What happened in Khan Younis, Gaza
At least two shells exploded at a crowd of thousands, which had been waiting in the hope of getting food from aid trucks. An eyewitness confirmed the incident to Reuters.
“All of a sudden, they let us move forward and made everyone gather, and then shells started falling, tank shells,” said Alaa, the eyewitness.
“No one is looking at these people with mercy. The people are dying, they are being torn apart, to get food for their children. Look at these people, all these people are torn to get flour to feed their children.”
At least 200 people were wounded – 20 of them are in critical condition.
Also read: UN accuses Israel of ‘weaponising food, aid’ as 38 die in fresh gunfire in Gaza
What Israeli Defence Forces said
The IDF claimed that the gathering was near its military operations area.
“Earlier today, a gathering was identified adjacent to an aid distribution truck that got stuck in the area of Khan Yunis, and in proximity to IDF troops operating in the area. The IDF is aware of reports regarding several injured individuals from IDF fire following the crowd’s approach. The details of the incident are under review. The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals and operates to minimise harm as much as possible to them while maintaining the safety of our troops,” it said in a statement.
At least 14 other people were also killed in separate Israeli gunfire and airstrikes elsewhere in the enclave, taking Tuesday’s death toll to at least 65.
Israel has been sending most of the aid that is allowed into Gaza through a US-backed group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Gaza authorities say hundreds of Palestinians have been killed trying to reach the GHF’s sites.
The Gaza war began in October 2023, triggered by Hamas’s attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 people. Since then, in Israel’s retaliatory bombings and ground assaults, 55,000 Palestinians have died, and over 2.3 million people are displaced.
The war and Israel’s blockade of aid have triggered a famine-like situation in the Strip.
