• Witnesses say Israeli forces fired on crowds around a kilometer from an aid site run by an Israeli-backed foundation

RAFAH, Gaza Strip: At least 21 people were killed and scores wounded Sunday as they were on their way to receive food in the Gaza Strip, according to a Red Cross field hospital and multiple witnesses. The witnesses said Israeli forces fired on crowds around a kilometer from an aid site run by an Israeli-backed foundation.

The military did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The foundation said in a statement that it delivered aid “without incident” early Sunday and has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones where independent access is limited.

Officials at the field hospital said at least 21 people were killed and another 175 people were wounded, without saying who opened fire on them. An Associated Press reporter saw dozens of people being treated at the hospital.

New aid system marred by chaos

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation ‘s distribution of aid has been marred by chaos, and multiple witnesses have said Israeli troops fired on crowds near the delivery sites. Before Sunday, at least six people had been killed and more than 50 wounded according to local health officials.

The foundation says the private security contractors guarding its sites have not fired on the crowds, while the Israeli military has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions.

The foundation said in a statement that it distributed 16 truckloads of aid early Sunday “without incident,” and dismissed what it referred to as “false reporting about deaths, mass injuries and chaos.”

‘The scene was horrible’

Thousands of people headed toward the distribution site hours before dawn, congregating at the Flag Roundabout, about a kilometer (1,000 yards) away, as they waited for the site to open, according to witnesses. They said Israeli forces ordered people to disperse and come back later – before opening fire.

“There was fire from all directions, from naval warships, from tanks and drones,” said Amr Abu Teiba, who was in the crowd.

He said he saw at least 10 bodies with gunshot wounds and several other wounded people, including women. People used carts to ferry the dead and wounded to the field hospital. “The scene was horrible,” he said.

Ibrahim Abu Saoud, another eyewitness, provided a nearly identical account. He said the military fired around 300 meters (yards) away.

Abu Saoud said he saw many people with gunshot wounds, including a young man who he said had died at the scene. “We weren’t able to help him,” he said.

Mohammed Abu Teaima, 33, said he saw Israeli forces open fire and kill his cousin and another woman as they were heading toward the distribution site. He said his cousin was shot in his chest and died at the scene. Many others were wounded, including his brother-in-law, he said.

“They opened heavy fire directly toward us,” he said as he was waiting outside the Red Cross field hospital for word on his wounded relative.

The hub is part of a controversial new aid system

Israel and the United States say the new system is aimed at preventing Hamas from siphoning off assistance. Israel has not provided any evidence of systematic diversion, and the UN denies it has occurred.

UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to work with the new system, saying it violates humanitarian principles because it allows Israel to control who receives aid and forces people to relocate to distribution sites, risking yet more mass displacement in the territory.

The UN system has struggled to bring in aid after Israel slightly eased its total blockade of the territory last month. Those groups say Israeli restrictions, the breakdown of law and order, and widespread looting make it extremely difficult to deliver aid to Gaza’s roughly 2 million Palestinians.

Experts have warned that the territory is at risk of famine if more aid is not brought in.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. They are still holding 58 hostages, around a third of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s military campaign has killed over 54,000 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. The offensive has destroyed vast areas of the territory, displaced around 90 percent of its population and left people almost completely reliant on international aid.

AP