Israeli army kills six Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid

(Patria) - Six Palestinians were killed and dozens injured as Israeli forces fired on a crowd gathered waiting for humanitarian aid trucks in Gaza, the Palestinian Ministry of Health announced today.

Palestinians rushed for aid supplies last night at a roundabout in the Kuwait area, south of Gaza City, when the Israeli army opened fire, residents and health officials said.

The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident, Hina reported.

Due to the war in Gaza, most of the enclave's 2.3 million residents have been displaced. There have been chaotic scenes and fatal incidents during the distribution of humanitarian aid as desperately hungry people try to get food.

Palestinian health authorities announced on February 29 that Israeli forces had killed more than 100 Palestinians while they were waiting for food trucks near Gaza City.

Israel said those people died in a crowd that surrounded humanitarian aid trucks, saying the victims were trampled.

In the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, Palestinian health officials said eight people were killed today in an Israeli airstrike when a food distribution center was hit.

In Deir Al-Balah, also in central Gaza, an Israeli missile hit a house and killed nine people, Palestinian doctors said.

Residents said Israeli air and ground bombardments continued overnight in areas across the enclave, including Rafah in the south, where more than a million displaced people have taken refuge.

As the war enters its sixth month, the UN has warned that at least 576,000 people in Gaza – a quarter of the population – are on the brink of starvation, and global pressure is mounting on Israel to allow greater access to the enclave.

Israel denies obstructing aid deliveries to Gaza. It blames humanitarian agencies for failures and accuses Hamas of diverting aid. Hamas denies this and says Israel is using starvation as a weapon in its military offensive.