The war between Israel and Hamas

At least 93 killed in food distribution in Gaza – just on Sunday

Mariela Quintana Melin

Updated 10.50 | Published 07.51

 

Palestinians were forced to leave their homes in Dayr al-Balah on Sunday after the Israeli military issued an evacuation order. Photo: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP

The famine in Gaza has reached a new level, according to the UN.

At the same time, hungry people are being shot dead when they try to get emergency aid.

Yesterday alone, 93 people were killed.

At least 93 people were killed in Gaza on Sunday while trying to get food. This is according to the Hamas-controlled Civil Defense.

The attacks took place in both northern and southern Gaza.

In northern Gaza, at least 79 people were killed as trucks from the UN World Food Programme (WFP) arrived with aid.

"As the convoy approached, the surrounding crowd was fired upon by Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire," a WFP representative wrote on X.

"These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This horrific incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are being carried out in Gaza," the representative continued.

In Rafah, in southern Gaza, nine people were killed at a distribution point. And in Khan Yunis, four people were killed, Mahmud Basal, a spokesman for the civil defense, told AFP.

The Israeli military disputes the death toll. Instead, it says it fired warning shots to "avert an immediate threat" at a food distribution point near Gaza City.

Dying of hunger

The health authority in Gaza also stated that 19 people had died of starvation in the past 24 hours, writes Al Jazeera. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unwra, states that they are receiving “desperate reports of starvation” from inside Gaza.

“Food prices have increased 40 times. Meanwhile, just outside Gaza, Unwra has enough food in stock to feed the entire population for over three months,” writes Unwra on X.

Earlier in July, the UN said that 800 people in Gaza had been killed since the end of May while trying to get food. 615 of them had been killed near the distribution points of the criticized organization Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Attack on city in central Gaza

On Monday morning, the Israeli military launched an air and ground attack on the city of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, several media outlets report. The BBC reports that tanks are visible in the streets.

A few hours earlier, the Israeli military had urged residents of four neighborhoods to evacuate. According to the UN, there were between 50,000 and 80,000 people in that area when the evacuation order came into effect. Many of them Palestinians who had already fled other parts of Gaza.

Now many people are fleeing Deir al-Balah, according to the UN, which warns of a “humanitarian collapse.” According to the UN, there are several warehouses with emergency aid, four health centers and four medical support stations in the area. Water infrastructure that is considered critical for people is also located in the area, such as a desalination plant and three wells.

“Damage to this infrastructure could have life-threatening consequences,” writes the UN organization Ocha in a statement.