Gazans Killed Seeking Aid as Starvation Rises and Burial Shrouds Run Out

GAZA CITY: At least 40 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire and airstrikes in Gaza on Monday (Aug 4), including 10 who died while seeking humanitarian aid, health authorities in the enclave said. Another five reportedly died of starvation as hunger and chaos mount across the territory.

The 10 aid-seekers were killed in two separate incidents near aid distribution sites operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), local medics said. More than 1,000 people have been killed trying to access GHF aid since the group began operating in May, according to the United Nations. Most deaths were reportedly caused by Israeli forces firing near the sites.

“Everyone who goes there, comes back either with a bag of flour or carried back as a martyr or injured. No one comes back safe,” said Bilal Thari, a 40-year-old Palestinian mourner at Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, where bodies of those killed while seeking aid were being collected.

AID ACCESS REMAINS LIMITED

On Sunday, Gaza health officials said at least 13 Palestinians were killed at the Zikim crossing while waiting for UN aid trucks near the northern border with Israel.

Due to shortages of burial materials, bodies were wrapped in blankets instead of traditional Islamic shrouds, which Palestinians said had become scarce because of Israeli border restrictions and rising casualties.

“We don’t want war, we want peace… women are out there on the streets, we have nothing available for us to live a normal life like all human beings,” Thari said.

The Israeli military said it had not fired earlier Monday in the vicinity of the southern Gaza aid distribution centre but did not address Sunday’s incident directly.

Israel says it is taking steps to improve aid flow, including pausing military operations in some areas during parts of the day, conducting air drops, and setting up protected routes for aid convoys.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene his security cabinet this week to discuss the next phase of the military operation, reiterating Israel’s goals of defeating Hamas and securing the release of hostages.