Source : NEW INDIAN EXPRESS NEWS
Gaza’s civil defence agency said 30 people were killed by Israeli fire in the Palestinian territory on Wednesday, including 11 who were seeking aid.
The war sparked by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel has ravaged the Gaza Strip, with severe shortages of food, fuel and clean water.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that 11 people were killed and more than 100 wounded “after the occupation forces opened fire and launched several shells… at thousands of citizens” who had gathered to queue for food in central Gaza.
The army told AFP it was looking into the incident reported by the civil defence agency.
In early March, Israel imposed a total aid blockade on Gaza amid deadlock in truce negotiations, only partially easing restrictions in late May.
Since then, chaotic scenes and a string of deadly shootings have occurred near areas where Palestinians have gathered in hope of receiving aid.
The civil defence agency said another 19 people were killed in three Israeli strikes on Wednesday, which it said targeted houses and a tent for displaced people.
Israeli restrictions on media in the Gaza Strip and difficulties in accessing some areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency.
The UN humanitarian office OCHA said on Monday that its partners “continue to warn of the risk of famine in Gaza, amid catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity”.
The civil defence agency reported that at least 53 people were killed on Tuesday, as they gathered near an aid centre in the southern city of Khan Yunis hoping to receive flour.
The Israeli military told AFP regarding one of Wednesday’s attacks that its troops were “operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities”.
SOURCE :- NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
