Israeli Forces Kill Over 100 Palestinians Amidst Deepening Hunger in Gaza

At least 115 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, in what local authorities described as a deadly escalation of violence against civilians trying to obtain food. The majority of the victims - 92 people - were shot near food distribution sites in Zikim in the north, and in Rafah and Khan Younis in the south, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

In Zikim, Israeli troops opened fire on crowds gathered in hopes of receiving flour from a UN convoy. Medical sources reported that 79 people were shot in that incident alone. Further south, nine more Palestinians were killed near an aid distribution point in Rafah, just a day after 36 others were killed in the same area. Another four were shot dead in Khan Younis while trying to access humanitarian supplies.

One of the survivors, Rizeq Betaar, said he helped transport a wounded youth to the hospital using a bicycle. “We tried to save him. But there is nothing left here - no ambulances, no food, no life,” he said. Osama Marouf, another man present during the Zikim shootings, described attempting to save an elderly man. “He was like my father,” he said, breaking down. “May God give us strength to endure.”

The Israeli military acknowledged the shootings, claiming its forces had fired “warning shots” to deter what it called an “immediate threat” to troops. It did not provide further details or evidence to support the claim.

The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) strongly disputed that version of events, saying the people shot were civilians trying to reach food. The WFP stated that its 25-truck convoy had cleared Israeli checkpoints when it encountered a large crowd near Zikim. Moments later, gunfire erupted. “The surrounding crowd came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire,” the agency said.

The WFP accused Israel of failing to honor prior assurances that its military would not interfere with humanitarian routes. “The hunger crisis in Gaza has entered a new phase,” the agency warned. “Malnutrition is skyrocketing, with 90,000 women and children needing urgent treatment. Nearly one in three people are going days without eating.” It called for an immediate scale-up in aid deliveries to prevent further catastrophe.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health said at least 19 people died of starvation on Sunday alone, and warned that hundreds more suffering from severe malnutrition are at imminent risk of death. Since the war began, 71 children have reportedly died from hunger, and tens of thousands more show signs of serious undernourishment.

At GHF (Gaza Humanitarian Foundation) distribution points in Rafah and Khan Younis, Israeli forces killed at least 13 more people on Sunday. These attacks brought the number of aid seekers killed at or near GHF sites since May to nearly 1,000, according to the Palestinian Civil Defence.

One man, Ahmed Hassouna, described how an Israeli tank opened fire on the crowd near the GHF site. “They started gassing us. We barely escaped with our lives,” he said. The GHF has faced criticism from humanitarian agencies for operating under Israeli military protection, often using private contractors to distribute aid in controlled zones.

Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, condemned the situation, saying that aid is sitting just kilometers from those starving inside Gaza. “This is a man-made crisis allowed to continue with complete impunity,” he said. UNRWA reportedly has enough aid stored at the border to feed Gaza’s population for months but has been unable to deliver it since Israel shut crossings on March 2.

In the U.S., the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) denounced Israel’s actions, calling the ongoing attacks on starving civilians a “human tragedy” enabled by U.S. weapons and political complicity. CAIR’s national executive director Nihad Awad said Western governments would be remembered for their silence in the face of what he described as genocide.

Doctors in Gaza report growing numbers of patients arriving at hospitals too weak to stand. Dr Mohammed Abu Afash, director of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society, said hunger-related illnesses have surged beyond their capacity to treat. “We are heading into the unknown,” he said. “This is a disaster in the making.”

Meanwhile, Israeli forces reportedly killed 67 Palestinians near UN aid trucks in northern Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The WFP said its convoy had just entered the area when gunfire broke out. The IDF again claimed it fired only “warning shots” in response to a threat, but did not elaborate or confirm the casualty figures.

Overwhelmed medical staff at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City received dozens of victims. One woman outside the hospital said simply, “The whole population is dying. Children are starving. All we have is water and salt.”

The Palestinian Civil Defence later raised the total number of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire across Gaza on Sunday to 93, including 80 in the north, nine in Rafah, and four in Khan Younis.

Residents described scenes of chaos and desperation. Qasem Abu Khater told AFP that he went out hoping to get a bag of flour, but was caught in a deadly stampede. “The tanks fired randomly. Snipers picked people off like animals,” he said.

The WFP reiterated its alarm in a public statement, noting that “nearly one in three Gazans are not eating for days” and warning that aid disruptions are pushing the territory to the brink of famine.

On Saturday alone, another 32 people were killed by Israeli fire near food distribution points in southern Gaza, according to the health ministry. These incidents have become near-daily occurrences since late May.

In a separate development, the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for parts of Deir al-Balah, a city in central Gaza where no ground operations have yet been launched. Leaflets dropped from the air instructed tens of thousands of people, many already displaced, to relocate to al-Mawasi on the coast. The move triggered panic among residents and raised fears of an impending ground assault.

Israeli officials told Reuters that the army had stayed out of the targeted neighborhoods until now because it suspects hostages may be held there. It is believed that 20 of the remaining 50 hostages taken on October 7, 2023, are still alive.

Deir al-Balah is overcrowded, filled with families living in tents after repeated displacements since the start of the war. Most of Gaza’s 2.2 million residents have been forced to flee multiple times during the conflict.

On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV called for an immediate end to the violence and condemned the “indiscriminate use of force.” His remarks followed an Israeli strike that damaged Gaza’s only Catholic church, prompting a rare expression of regret from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel began its offensive in response to the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages being taken. Since then, the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 58,895, according to the health ministry, figures cited by the UN and international observers as the most reliable currently available.

Sources:

• Al Jazeera
• MSN
• BBC
• The Guardian