An Israeli source said the army fired into the crowd, believing it “posed a threat”.
Gaza:
Israeli forces opened fire on Palestinians scrambling for food aid in the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing more than 100 people in an incident the Hamas-controlled territory’s health ministry said.
While there are conflicting reports on how the pre-dawn incident unfolded, the Israeli military said thousands of Gazans surrounded a convoy of 38 aid trucks in a “stampede” that left dozens dead and injured, including Including some people getting run over.
An Israeli source said the army fired into the crowd, believing it “posed a threat”.
The Gaza Ministry of Health condemned the “massacre” in Gaza City, saying that 112 people were killed and more than 750 injured.
Reactions to the deaths poured in from around the world.
America ‘desperately seeking answers’
U.S. President Joe Biden said the incident would complicate delicate ceasefire negotiations in the nearly five-month war, and the White House called the death toll “very shocking.”
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that the United States is “urgently seeking more information about what exactly happened.”
He said Washington would be watching the upcoming investigation closely and “urgently seeking answers.”
France calls fire ‘unjustified’
The French foreign ministry said it was “unjustified that Israeli soldiers should open fire on civilians trying to obtain food”.
The statement added that the “tragic incident” occurred at a time when “increasing and intolerable numbers of Palestinian civilians” were suffering from hunger and disease, and that Israel must abide by international law and protect aid provided to civilians.
French President Macron wrote on the social media platform X that Palestinian “civilians were targeted by Israeli soldiers” and expressed his “strongest condemnation” of the killing.
Türkiye condemns ‘crimes against humanity’
Turkey accused Israel of committing “yet another crime against humanity” and condemned Gazans for being plunged into “famine” as civilians scavenge for dwindling food supplies.
Turkey’s foreign ministry said: “The fact that Israel… this time targeted innocent civilians waiting in line for humanitarian aid is proof of (Israel’s) conscious and collective destruction of the Palestinian people.”
Colombia abandons purchase of Israeli weapons
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has condemned what he called “genocide” against the Palestinian people and suspended weapons purchases from Israel, a major supplier to Colombia’s security forces.
“More than 100 Palestinians were killed by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu in order to demand food. This is called genocide and is reminiscent of the Holocaust,” Petro wrote on X.
“The world must stop Netanyahu.”
Spain condemns ‘unacceptable’ incidents
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Alvarez wrote on “
Italy demands “immediate ceasefire”
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and urged Israel to protect the Palestinian people after the “tragic death.”
“We strongly urge Israel to protect the people of Gaza and strictly establish facts and accountability,” he said on X.
Prime Minister Georgia Meloni expressed “deep dismay and concern” at the violence.
United Nations condemns
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the incident and was “shocked by the tragic human toll” caused by the conflict, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
“Desperate civilians in Gaza need urgent help, including in the besieged north, where the United Nations has been unable to deliver aid for more than a week,” Dujarric said.
EU condemns ‘massacre’
EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell condemned the deaths as “completely unacceptable”.
“I am horrified by the news of yet another massacre of civilians in Gaza who are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance,” he said on X.
Qatar condemns ‘heinous massacre’
Qatar’s foreign ministry “condemns in the strongest terms the heinous massacre committed by the Israeli occupation” and called on the international community to take “urgent action” to stop the fighting in Gaza.
The report goes on to warn that Israel’s “disregard for Palestinian lives… will ultimately undermine international efforts to implement a two-state solution, thereby paving the way for an expansion of the cycle of violence in the region”.
Saudi Arabia calls for ceasefire
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry condemned the deaths and reiterated the “need for an immediate ceasefire.”
It also once again “demands that the international community take a firm stance to force Israel to respect international humanitarian law, immediately open safe humanitarian corridors, allow the evacuation of the wounded, and ensure the delivery of rescue assistance.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
