Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have denied a report from the left-leaning Israeli newspaper Haaretz, which claimed that Israeli soldiers were instructed to shoot at Palestinians approaching aid distribution sites in Gaza.
The report follows claims from Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry that more than 500 Palestinians have been killed, and many more injured, while seeking food at these aid sites since the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began its operations about a month ago.
Thousands of Palestinians have reportedly walked long distances to reach these hubs, passing through Israeli military zones where witnesses say Israeli soldiers have fired on the aid seekers. Haaretz cited unnamed Israeli soldiers who allegedly said they were ordered to use unnecessary lethal force on crowds that posed no apparent threat.
Despite these allegations, Netanyahu and Katz called the report “malicious falsehoods” meant to tarnish the reputation of the Israeli military. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that it was investigating incidents in which civilians were harmed near the aid sites but denied any deliberate targeting of civilians.
The GHF, although unaware of the specific incidents described, called for a thorough investigation and transparent reporting on the matter.
In another incident, 18 people were reportedly killed when an Israeli airstrike hit a street in central Gaza’s Deir al Balah, where a crowd had gathered to collect flour from a Palestinian police unit that had seized it from looters.
The ongoing aid blockade has exacerbated Gaza’s food crisis, and the looting of aid has worsened as Israel resumed limited aid entry into Gaza in mid-May. On Friday, Shifa Hospital director Mohamed Abu Selmyiha reported receiving several bodies, some from GHF sites, though the exact cause of death was unclear.
International calls for action have been made, with UN Secretary-General António Guterres urging a return to the UN’s established aid distribution system in Gaza, highlighting the ongoing humanitarian crisis. Humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders condemned the GHF system, calling it a “slaughter masquerading as humanitarian aid,” while local Gaza tribes began independent efforts to protect aid convoys from looters.
