26 killed, over 100 injured in Israeli strike on US aid site in Gaza: Hamas media

An Israeli strike killed at least 26 Palestinians and injured over 100 early on Sunday at a US-backed aid distribution site, Reuters reported, citing Hamas-affiliated media.

“At least 10 Palestinians were killed and more than 100 others… were wounded due to gunfire from Israeli vehicles towards thousands of citizens” approaching a US aid site west of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

He said the dead and injured were transferred to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis.

The strike hit an aid distribution point run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a group that recently began operating in Gaza with Israeli support.

While some Palestinians have raised concerns about the group’s neutrality and the biometric checks that Israel planned to implement, Israeli officials said the screening was intended to ensure aid did not reach anyone linked to Hamas.

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On 28 May, Hamas accused Israel of killing at least three Palestinians and injuring 46 near one of the GHF’s aid sites—an allegation the organisation denied. The Israeli military said troops had fired warning shots outside the compound to restore order after thousands of people rushed towards the site.

There has been no immediate comment from Israel on the reported strike.

Gaza on a blink of a famine

More than 18 months into the war in Gaza, Israel is facing growing international criticism over the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territory, where the UN has warned that the entire population is at risk of famine.

Aid has only started to trickle in following Israel’s partial lifting of a total blockade that lasted more than two months. Last month, the UN reported looting of its aid trucks and warehouses.

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The UN’s World Food Programme has urged Israel to allow significantly more food assistance into Gaza at a faster pace, warning that desperation is fuelling growing insecurity.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), supported by Israeli troops and operated by US-contracted security, began distributing food in the Strip on 26 May.