Palestinians racing toward vehicles carrying humanitarian aid in Gaza City early Thursday were attacked by gunmen, resulting in over 100 casualties and hundreds of injuries, according to local media.
While some accounts said Israeli forces opened fire on the crowd as they surrounded the vehicles, the Israeli military claimed that the majority of casualties were crushed underfoot. No one knows for sure what happened.
Ashraf al-Qidra, a spokesman for the health ministry, claimed 104 lives were lost and 760 were injured, calling the incident a “massacre.”
The Israeli Defense personnel (IDF) claimed that Israeli personnel opened fire on less than ten people while delivering humanitarian aid.
As seen in the released footage, hundreds of people crowded around the vehicles delivering aid.
According to al-Qidra, a spokeswoman for the Gaza Health Ministry, the tragic occurrence occurred at the al-Nabusi roundabout, which is located in the northern portion of the enclave, west of Gaza City.
The chief of the ambulance service at Kamal Adwan Hospital, Fares Afana, stated that upon arrival, medics discovered “dozens or hundreds” of bodies lying on the ground.
Donkey carts were used to transport some of the injured and deceased to hospitals since there were insufficient ambulances. According to Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, emergency workers found it challenging to handle the surge of patients.
Hamas claims that the incident and the “ethnic cleansing” of its people are “fully responsible” by Israel, President Biden, and his administration. They demanded protests against Israel’s bombing of Gaza from all corners of the globe.
Israel launched an air, sea, and ground invasion against northern Gaza and Gaza City on October 7 in response to a murder by Hamas terrorists who stormed the border from Gaza and killed almost 1,200 people. Due to months of isolation, very little aid has been able to reach the region, which has endured extensive destruction.
With an additional 70,457 wounded, the Palestinian death toll from the war has risen to 30,035, according to the Health Ministry. While the report does not break down casualties by gender, it does note that around two-thirds of the deaths were women and children.
