More than 100 killed in crowd waiting for aid, Gaza health officials say

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More than 100 Palestinians are reported to have been killed while waiting for aid to be delivered in northern Gaza.

The Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory blamed Israeli forces, with witnesses quoted by the Associated Press and Palestinian media saying that Israeli troops opened fire on a crowd as they were pulling flour and canned items from trucks

The Israeli military said the incident was under review and later issued a statement saying dozens of people were killed or hurt as a result of pushing and trampling when aid trucks arrived near Gaza City. An Israeli source told Reuters that troops opened fire at “several people” in the crowd who posed a threat to them, while Israeli officials told the AP that troops opened fire, saying they did so after the crowd approached in a threatening way.

The Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said that at least 104 people were killed and around 760 were wounded. Spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra called it a “massacre”. Hamas issued a warning that it could stop taking part in negotiations for a ceasefire in the war and the release of the remaining hostages it holds. Those talks had been progressing with help from mediators Qatar and Egypt, as well as the US and there has been hope in some quarters about the possibility of reaching an agreement before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan starts around 10 March. “The negotiations conducted by the movement’s leadership are not an open process at the expense of the blood of our people,” the Hamas statement said.

Egypt also condemned the killings. “It is a heinous crime to target peaceful civilians who are rushing to get their share of humanitarian aid,” read a statement released by Egypt’s foreign ministry. “It is a flagrant violation of the international law and the international humanitarian law, and also shows disregard to the sanctity of human lives”.

Kamel Abu Nahel, who was being treated for a gunshot wound at al-Shifa Hospital, said he and others went to the distribution point in the middle of the night because they heard there would be a delivery of food. “We’ve been eating animal feed for two months,” he told AP.

He said Israeli troops opened fire on the crowd, causing it to scatter, with some people hiding under cars. After the shooting stopped, people went back to the trucks, and the soldiers opened fire again, he said. He was shot in the leg and fell over, and then a truck ran over his leg as it sped off, he said. The head of Kamal Adwan hospital in Gaza City, Hussam Abu Safieyah, said it had received 10 dead bodies and dozens of wounded patients from the incident west of the city. Videos posted on social media showed trucks carrying bodies.

An Israeli government spokesperson described the Palestinian casualties as a tragedy and said initial indications were that deaths were caused by delivery drivers plowing into a surging crowd. “At some point the trucks were overwhelmed and the people driving the trucks, which were Gazan civilian drivers, plowed into the crowds of people, ultimately killing, my understanding is, tens of people,” spokesperson Avi Hyman told reporters. “It’s obviously a tragedy but we’re not sure of the specifics quite yet.”

The Israeli military night-time aerial surveillance video in which hundreds of people can be seen crowding round at least seven lorries in the same area. “The footage shows how numerous people surrounded the trucks and as a result, dozens were killed and injured from pushing, trampling and being run over by the trucks,” a statement said.

“The IDF [Israeli Defence Forces] will continue to assist in the transfer and coordination of humanitarian aid,” it added.

Alaa Abu Daiya, a resident, told the AP that Israeli troops open fire and also that a tank fired a shell. An Israeli military spokesperson said: “There is no knowledge of Israeli shelling in the area.”

The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, cited medical sources as saying that Israeli forces fired towards thousands of people from Gaza City and other northern areas as they waited at Nabulsi roundabout for the arrival of lorries loaded with humanitarian aid.

The UN’s undersecretary for humanitarian affairs, Martin Griffiths, said: “Even after close to five months of brutal holstilties, Gaza still has the ability to shock us. I’m appalled at the reported killing and injury of hundreds of people during a transfer of aid supplies west of Gaza City today. This comes as the death toll across Gaza… hits the 30,000 mark. Life is draining out of Gaza at terrifying speed.”

The White House said it is looking into reports of Israeli fire on Palestinians waiting for aid near Gaza City, describing it as a “serious incident.”

“We mourn the loss of innocent life and recognize the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, where innocent Palestinians are just trying to feed their families,” a White House National Security Council spokesperson said in a statement. “This underscores the importance of expanding and sustaining the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, including through a potential temporary ceasefire.”

Separately, the Health Ministry in Gaza said the Palestinian death toll from the war has climbed to 30,035, with another 70,457 wounded. It does not differentiate between civilians and militants in its figures but says women and children make up around two-thirds of those killed. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government in Gaza, maintains detailed records of casualties. Its counts from previous wars have largely matched those of the UN independent experts and even Israel’s own tallies.

Gaza City and the surrounding areas in the enclave’s north were the first targets of Israel’s air, sea and ground offensive, launched in response to a bloody attack by Hamas inside Israel on 7 October. That attack killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and the militants seized around 250 hostages. Hamas and other militants are still holding around 100 hostages and the remains of about 30 more, after releasing most of the other captives during a November truce.

While many Palestinians fled the Israeli response, which began with bombardment in the north, a few hundred thousand are believed to remain in the area, which has suffered widespread devastation and has been largely isolated during the conflict. Trucks carrying food reached northern Gaza this week, the first major aid delivery to the area in a month, officials said Wednesday.

Last week, the World Food Programme said it had been forced to suspend aid deliveries to northern Gaza after its first convoy in three weeks was surrounded by crowds of hungry people close to the Israeli military’s Wadi Gaza checkpoint, and then faced gunfire in Gaza City.

International calls for a ceasefire have been growing as the Palestinian death toll has rise. Israel’s staunchest ally, the US, and a number of other nations have warned of further mass casualties if Israel follows through on vows to attack the southernmost city of Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million has taken refuge. They also say a Rafah offensive could decimate what remains of aid operations in the territory.

Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report