At least one Palestinian was killed and 48 were wounded, mostly by gunfire, when a crowd overran a new Gaza aid hub set up by a US and Israeli-backed foundation, the Gaza Health Ministry said Wednesday.
Crowds of Palestinians broke through the fences around the distribution site on Tuesday, and an Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gun fire, and saw a military helicopter firing flares.
Israeli army fire caused most of the injuries, Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN Human Rights Office for the Palestinian territories, told reporters in Geneva.
The distribution hub outside Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah was opened the day before by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations.
The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies.
A 'distraction from atrocities'
The new aid model is a "waste of resources" and a "distraction from atrocities" that are happening in Gaza, where the "clock ticking towards famine" UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said on Wednesday.
"I believe it is a waste of resources and a distraction from atrocities. We already have an aid distribution system that is fit for purpose," Lazzarini said in Japan.
"The humanitarian community in Gaza, including UNRWA, is ready. We have the experience and expertise to reach people in need," he said. "Meanwhile, the clock is ticking towards famine, so humanitarian (work) must be allowed to do its life-saving work now," he added.
Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli border closures pushed Gaza to the brink of famine.
Israel says it helped establish the new aid mechanism to prevent Hamas from siphoning off supplies, but it has provided no evidence of systematic diversion and UN agencies say they have mechanisms in place to prevent it.
Read more‘Weaponising aid’: New plan calls for private contractors to take over from UN in Gaza
GHF says it has established four hubs, two of which have begun operating. They are guarded by private security contractors and have chain-link fences channeling Palestinians into a what resemble military bases surrounded by large sand berms. GHF said its military contractors had not fired on the crowd but “fell back” before resuming operations.
Israeli forces are stationed nearby in what Israel refers to as the Morag corridor, a military zone separating the southern city of Rafah – which is now mostly uninhabited – from the rest of the territory.
The UN and other humanitarian groups have refused to participate in GHF’s system, saying it violates humanitarian principles. They say it can be used by Israel to forcibly displace the population by requiring them to move near the few distribution hubs or else face starvation, a violation of international law.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that “there was some loss of control momentarily” at the distribution point, adding that "happily, we brought it under control”.
He repeated that Israel plans to move Gaza’s entire population to a “sterile zone” at the southern end of the territory while troops fight Hamas elsewhere.
Throughout the war, the UN and other aid groups have conducted a massive operation distributing food, medicine and other supplies to wherever Palestinians are located. Israel says GHF will replace that network, but the past week has allowed a trickle of aid to enter Gaza for the UN to distribute.
Israeli airstrikes on Sanaa
In a separate development, Israel said it had carried out airstrikes Wednesday on the international airport in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, after Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired several missiles at the country in recent days, without causing casualties. The Israeli military said it destroyed aircraft used by the rebels.
Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6, destroying the airport’s terminal and leaving its runway riddled with craters. Some flights resumed to Sanaa on May 17.
(FRANCE 24 with AP and AFP)
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