The Gaza Ministry of Health said on Thursday that at least 112 people were killed and more than 750 wounded, with the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemning what it said was a cold-blooded “massacre”.
The ministry said the attack was part of Israel’s ongoing “genocidal war”. It called on the international community to “urgently intervene” to forge a ceasefire as “the only way to protect civilians”.
People had congregated at al-Rashid Street, where aid trucks carrying flour were believed to be on the way. Al Jazeera verified footage showing the bodies of dozens of killed and wounded Palestinians being carried onto trucks as no ambulances could reach the area.
Reporting from the scene, Al Jazeera’s Ismail al-Ghoul said that after opening fire, Israeli tanks advanced and ran over many of the dead and injured bodies. “It is a massacre, on top of the starvation threatening citizens in Gaza,” he said.
The mass shooting was the latest instance of systematic attacks on hungry people waiting for scraps of food. Over the past few days, Palestinians gathered in large groups waiting for aid trucks on Salah al-Din Street near Gaza City have been shot at by Israeli forces.
Recently, a truck that was supposed to deliver aid to people in Gaza tragically turned into the truck carrying those injured and killed.
With aid agencies unable to deliver supplies to northern Gaza since January 23, many are taking a long trek towards the south by foot.
Israel launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip on October 7. More than 30,000 people are reported to have been killed to date, mostly women and children.