Israeli attacks kill 67 waiting for aid in northern Gaza
Monitoring Desk
GAZA: Israeli attacks have killed 67 Palestinians waiting for UN aid trucks in northern Gaza, health officials in the enclave have said, after more bodies were brought into hospitals from the scene.
Earlier, health officials at Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said dozens of Palestinians were killed and wounded by Israeli fire as crowds gathered to await the entry of UN aid trucks.
The increased death toll comes as the Israeli military issued new evacuation warnings for parts of central Gaza.
The evacuation warnings were made in one of the few areas the military has rarely operated with ground troops.
The evacuation cuts access between the city of Deir al-Balah and the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis in the narrow enclave.
The military evacuation demand, which could signal an imminent attack on neighbourhoods in Deir al-Balah, alarmed the families of Israeli hostages, who fear their relatives are being held there.
The Israeli military dropped leaflets from the sky ordering people to leave their homes and head further south.
The announcement comes as Israel and Hamas have been holding ceasefire talks in Qatar, but international mediators say there have been no breakthroughs.
The area of Gaza under the evacuation order is also where many international organisations attempting to distribute aid are located.
Military spokesman Avichay Adraee warned the military will attack “with intensity”.
He called for residents, including those sheltering in tents, to head to the Muwasi area, a desolate tent camp on Gaza’s southern shore that the Israeli military has designated a humanitarian zone.
The Gaza health ministry said at least 71 children had died of malnutrition during the war, and 60,000 others were suffering from symptoms of malnutrition.
Food prices have increased well beyond what most of the population of more than two million can afford.
Several people who spoke to Reuters via chat apps said they either had one meal or no meal in the past 24 hours.
“As a father, I wake up in the early morning to look for food, for even a loaf of bread for my five children, but all in vain,” said Ziad, a nurse.
“People who didn’t die of bombs will die of hunger. We want an end to this war now, a truce, even for two months,” he said.
Others said they felt dizzy walking in the streets and that many fainted as they walked.
Fathers leave tents to avoid questions by their children about what to eat.
UNRWA, the UN refugee agency dedicated to Palestinians, demanded Israel allow more aid trucks into Gaza, saying it had enough food for the entire population for over three months which was not allowed in.
“The Israeli Authorities are starving civilians in Gaza. Among them are 1 million children. Lift the siege: allow UNRWA to bring in food and medicines,” it wrote on X.
