Gaza (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – While thousands of Palestinians fled to the Zikim border with Israel seeking food, Israeli airstrikes and gunfire took the lives of at least 25 people in Northern Gaza overnight, according to the local health authorities, who are responsible for administering ambulances, who said on Saturday.
The deadly airstrikes coincide with the ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas, which stopped after the US and Israel withdrew their negotiating teams on Thursday, casting further doubt on the ability of either of the negotiating parties to support their proposed positions.
Why were Palestinians gathering near the Zikim border?
In an attempt to get food, hundreds of desperate Palestinians risked their lives on Saturday to reach the Zikim border in the Gaza Strip. The majority of the deceased were killed by gunfire while they waited for assistance vehicles at the Zikim border with Israel, according to Shifa hospital workers.
There are four people killed in strikes, in a Gaza City apartment complex, medical personnel and the ambulance service said.
Hospital sources said some Palestinians died in the border area, in the northern Palestinian regions, in the last few weeks.
How did Israeli forces respond to the aid crowds?
According to some stories, when help is delivered, vehicles are sometimes swamped by criminal gangs and large groups of needy individuals as they enter and take out the goods.
When soldiers opened fire on a group of thousands of Palestinians in northern Gaza who were presenting a threat earlier this week, Israel’s military said it was aware of several injuries.
How are humanitarian groups reacting to Israel’s actions?
After months of Israel completely preventing food from entering Gaza or allowing just small amounts to enter, experts have warned that the region is on the verge of starvation. This month, the number of deaths from malnutrition-related causes has increased.
Nearly one in three Gaza residents has gone days without eating, according to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), which warns that malnutrition is on the rise and that some 90,000 women and children currently require immediate medical attention.
The warning comes as more than two dozen countries with Western allegiances and more than 100 human rights and humanitarian organizations have demanded an end to the war in Gaza. They have been harshly critical of Israel’s new assistance delivery system and blockade.
