Shots fired at distribution of relief supplies
At least five Gazans die in mass panic
March 30, 2024, 4:56 p.m
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Because of the catastrophic humanitarian situation, the people in the Gaza Strip are dependent on aid deliveries. When these are distributed, tragedies always occur: this time at least five people died in a mass panic. Some of them die from gunshots.
At least 5 people were killed and 30 others injured in gunfire and a stampede during the distribution of aid supplies in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent. As the organization announced, thousands of people gathered at a roundabout in the city of Gaza early in the morning in view of the arrival of around 15 trucks loaded with flour, among other things. Three of those killed were shot.
Eyewitnesses reported that Gazans overseeing the distribution fired into the air. But Israeli soldiers positioned in the area also opened fire. According to reports, people were hit by trucks while trying to get food. Videos show a convoy of trucks moving quickly past burning rubble near the distribution point in the darkness, as people scream and gunfire can be heard. When contacted, the Israeli military said it had “no records of the incident described.”
The roundabout in Gaza City has already been the scene of several chaotic and deadly incidents during the distribution of aid: around a week ago, according to the radical Islamic Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, 21 people were killed there by Israeli shelling while waiting for food, and a similar incident occurred therefore on March 14th. The Israeli military denied firing on waiting Palestinians.
At the end of February, according to Hamas, more than a hundred Palestinians were killed when Israeli soldiers opened fire as trucks carrying relief supplies arrived in the west of the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army subsequently acknowledged a “limited” number of shots fired by Israeli soldiers who felt “threatened.”
After more than five months of war between Israel and Hamas, the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is catastrophic. According to the UN World Food Program (WFP), half of the 2.4 million Palestinians living there are on the brink of famine.