CAIRO: At the very least 67 individuals have been killed by Israeli fireplace whereas they waited for UN assist vans in northern Gaza on Sunday (Jul 20), the territory’s well being ministry mentioned, as Israel issued new evacuation orders for areas full of displaced Gazans.
The ministry mentioned dozens of individuals have been additionally wounded within the incident in northern Gaza. It was one of many highest reported loss of life tolls amongst repeated current instances through which assist seekers have been killed, together with 36 on Saturday. One other six individuals have been killed close to one other assist web site within the south, it mentioned.
Israel’s army mentioned its troops had fired warning pictures in the direction of a crowd of 1000’s of individuals in northern Gaza on Sunday to take away what it mentioned was “a direct risk”.
It mentioned preliminary findings steered reported casualty figures have been inflated, and it “definitely doesn’t deliberately goal humanitarian assist vans”.
It didn’t instantly touch upon the incident within the south.
The UN World Meals Programme (WFP) mentioned that shortly after getting into Gaza, a WFP convoy of 25 vans carrying meals assist encountered “huge crowds of hungry civilians” who then got here below gunfire.
“WFP reiterates that any violence involving civilians in search of humanitarian assist is totally unacceptable,” it mentioned in a press release.
A Hamas official informed Reuters that the militant group was angered over the mounting deaths and the starvation disaster within the enclave, and that this might badly have an effect on ceasefire talks underway in Qatar.
In whole, well being authorities mentioned 90 individuals had been killed by Israeli gunfire and airstrikes throughout the enclave on Sunday.