On Sunday, at least 31 Palestinians were killed after Israeli forces opened fire at the site of a food distribution centre in Rafah, Gaza, according to witnesses. On Monday, another three Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire at the same site, according to health officials and a witness. And on Tuesday, 27 people were killed after Israeli forces opened fire again, say Gaza officials.
The incidents have intensified criticism of the new system for distributing supplies in Gaza, run by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) rather than by the UN or well-established aid organisations. The UN’s human rights chief, Volker Türk, said on Tuesday that Palestinians in Gaza now faced an impossible choice: “Die from starvation or risk being killed while trying to access the meagre food that is being made available.” The attacks on civilians, he added, constituted a war crime.
