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Five people were killed and dozens injured as a result of gunfire and a stampede during the distribution of aid at dawn on Saturday in the besieged Gaza Strip, which has been witnessing a devastating Israeli war for about 6 months, and which is threatened by imminent famine, according to UN and international agencies.
The Palestinian Red Crescent announced the death of five people and the injury of dozens as a result of gunfire and a stampede during the distribution of aid, at dawn on Saturday in the Gaza Strip, which is threatened by an imminent famine.
Video clips showed a convoy of trucks moving quickly in front of burning waste near a distribution point in the dark before dawn, while people could be heard screaming and the sound of gunfire, some of which were warning shots, according to eyewitnesses.
The accident occurred, according to the Red Crescent, after thousands of people gathered waiting for the arrival of about 15 trucks of flour and other foodstuffs, which were supposed to be delivered at the Kuwait Roundabout in Gaza City in the northern Gaza Strip.
Eyewitnesses reported that the people of Gaza who were supervising the distribution of aid opened fire in the air, but Israeli forces in the area also opened fire, while some trucks hit individuals who were trying to obtain food supplies.
According to the United Nations, Gaza's population of 2.4 million people faces the risk of famine, while humanitarian aid, which is subject to the supervision of the Israeli occupation, enters in small quantities into the besieged Strip.
On Thursday, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to “ensure the provision of urgent humanitarian assistance” to the Gaza Strip without delay, stressing that “famine has occurred.”
The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said: “Israel must allow UNRWA to deliver food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip daily and open other land crossing points.”
Israel rejected these accusations, stressing that it does not care about distributing food supplies in Gaza, while accusing United Nations agencies of being unable to manage the amount of aid that arrives there daily.