The United Nations Human Rights Office said on Friday that 1,373 Palestinians had been killed while waiting for aid in the Gaza Strip struck by the shortage since the end of May, most of them by the Israeli army.
“In total, since May 27, at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed while they were looking for food; 859 near the Gaza Humanitarian Sites supported by the United States and Israeli,” said the United Nations Office for the Palestinian Territories in a declaration.
“Most of these murders have been committed by the Israeli army,” he added.
Israeli fire killed 11 in Gaza
The Gaza Civil Defense Agency said 11 people had been killed by Israeli shots and air strikes on Friday, two of which were waiting for a help distribution site inside Palestinian territory.
Civil Defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that five people had been killed in a strike near the southern city of Khan Yunis, and four others in a separate strike on a vehicle in Deir El El-Balah in the center of Gaza.
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The Israeli army told AFP that it could not confirm strikes without specific coordinates.
Two other people were killed and more than 70 wounded by Israeli fires pending aid near a food distribution center led by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation supported by the United States and Israeli (GHF) between Khan Yunis and the neighboring city of Rafah, the Civil Defense said.
The army did not immediately respond to the report.
Thousands of gasans have gathered every day near the aid distribution points in Gaza, including the four managed by the GHF, whose operations were tainted by chaotic scenes and daily Israeli power relationships pulling on people waiting to collect rations.
The GHF has denied that fatal shots occurred in the immediate vicinity of its help points.
The media restrictions in Gaza and the difficulties in accessing many areas means that AFP is not able to independently check the tolls and the details provided by the Civil Defense Agency and other parties.
The Israeli restrictions on the entry of goods and assistance to Gaza since the start of the war almost 22 months ago led to shortages of food and essential goods, including medicine, medical supplies and fuel, on which hospitals count to supply their generators.
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The shortages were exacerbated by a total blockage of more than two months on the aid imposed by Israel, which began to attract the judgment at the end of May while the GHF began its operations.
The Israeli organization of the Ministry of Defense supervising civil affairs in the Palestinian territories, Cogat, said on Friday that more than 200 aid trucks had been collected and distributed by the UN and international organizations the day before.
The UN says Gaza needs at least 500 aid trucks per day.
Cogat added that four fuel oil tankers for the UN had entered the Palestinian territory and that 43 aid pallets were disseminated in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Jordan.
