70 Gazans killed as Israeli soldiers instructed to fire at unarmed aid seekers: Haartez

CAIRO – 27 June 2025: Israeli soldiers have stated they were instructed to open fire on unarmed Palestinian civilians who were desperately seeking assistance at designated aid distribution points in Gaza.

This revelation comes as recent violence has killed 70 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, primarily at sites operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, within the last 24 hours.

Soldiers reported that rather than employing crowd control tactics, they fired on crowds of civilians to deter them from approaching specific areas.

One unnamed soldier described the aid distribution site as a "killing field," stating that "between one and five people were killed every day" where he was stationed.

The soldier indicated that they treated the civilian crowds as if they were an "attacking force," opting to use lethal fire instead of non-lethal methods to manage and disperse the gatherings.

"We communicate with them through fire," he remarked, detailing the use of heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, and mortars against individuals, including the elderly, women, and children.

Gaza’s government media office has reported that at least 549 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the past month while attempting to access emergency aid.

❝Also read about a report indicating a possible agreement between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on an end to the war in Gaza, perhaps in two weeks, from here.❞

 

In mid-May, following a nearly three-month blockade, Israel, facing pressure from the international community including its western allies, permitted a limited amount of aid to enter the Gaza Strip.

Israel advocated for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a controversial US-backed private aid distributor, to deliver essential food aid to the starving population.

This move has sparked criticism, as the UN and other aid organizations have refused to collaborate with GHF, citing concerns over its neutrality and its distribution model, which they claim leads to the displacement of Palestinians.

“Gaza is the hungriest place on Earth,” emphasized spokesperson of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Jens Laerke late in May, noting that it is the only region globally where the entire population is at risk of famine.

This week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a halt to aid entering northern Gaza, alleging that Hamas has hijacked the assistance, though he provided no supporting evidence for this claim.

Israel forces continue to kill dozens of civilians everyday since the start of the war in October 2023.

Over the past 20 months, the Israeli forces have killed more than 56,200 Palestinians in Gaza, injured over 132,400 more, devastated vital infrastructure, flattened homes and left the enclave on brink of famine.