An Israeli rocket struck a street in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah in central Gaza on Thursday, killing at least 18, hospital officials said. Witnesses reported the attack came at a group of people waiting to receive flour and other assistance from a Palestinian police patrol that had seized the items from looters.
The security force, Sahm, which falls under the Gaza Interior Ministry led by Hamas, was allegedly distributing the confiscated items when the attack took place. Killed were at least seven members of Sahm and a child, as verified by Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Gruesome video footage documented young men’s bodies, some brutally dismembered, lying on the pavement.
The episode is the most recent in a string of violent events that have occurred during the delivery of humanitarian relief in Gaza. Israel has permitted limited quantities to enter the strip since mid-May after a more than two-month-long blockade. Still, delivery by the United Nations has been interrupted by looting, desperate civilians, and armed mobs.
To fight back against the anarchy, Gaza’s tribal groups recently initiated their own campaign to guard convoys. The National Gathering of Palestinian Tribes and Clans convoyed a first-ever flour shipment into northern Gaza, maintaining that aid is now being secured for civilians rather than stolen, contrary to what Israel says.
Israeli officials, such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz, blamed Hamas for diverting aid. The tribes, in turn, rejected the claims, calling them an excuse for renewed Israeli aggression.
In the meantime, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-funded private contractor, has begun distributing aid at designated southern sites. Access is still risky, with consistent reports of Israeli troops firing near distribution centers.
Late-night Israeli air raids killed at least 28 others, said Gaza’s Health Ministry, contributing to the mounting humanitarian crisis that has left more than 2 million Palestinians fighting for survival.
