New massacre in Gaza's hunger queues

BarcelonaAnother tragic day in Gaza's food lines. At least 93 Palestinians died Sunday and more than 150 were injured while waiting at humanitarian aid distribution points in the Strip. Most (80) died while trying to access trucks loaded with UN flour, the enclave's Health Ministry reported. Several witnesses report that the army fired on a crowd that had gathered to get food at the Beit Lahia checkpoint, after learning that vehicles carrying humanitarian aid would arrive there, at least for civilians.

Although the Israeli army did not acknowledge the events, it did admit that its troops had "fired warning shots" at "a concentration of thousands of Palestinians in the northern Gaza Strip" with the aim of "eliminating an immediate threat posed to them." The Palestinian authorities' estimate was higher than the actual figure.

More than 900 people have died in Gaza at humanitarian aid distribution points, since May the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – the controversial organization supported by the United States and Israel—replaced the approximately 400 centers organized by the United Nations and other NGOs with the support of the international community. Yesterday alone, 36 people died from Israeli gunfire.

The lack of food in Gaza is so extreme that this Saturday, the American NGO Rahma Worldwide warned that more than one million Gazans are at risk of dying of hunger. Palestinian authorities consider the hunger to be a "silent massacre" and assert that 17,000 children in the Strip suffer from severe malnutrition. In fact, this Sunday at least two people died of malnutrition at Al Shifa Hospital, according to the facility's director, one of whom was a 35-week-old baby.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has also urged Israel to lift its four-and-a-half-month supply blockade. "The Israeli authorities are starving civilians in Gaza. Among them are one million children. Lift the siege: allow UNRWA to bring in food and medicine," it told X on Sunday. The agency says it has enough food across the border to feed the 2.1 million people.

More evacuation orders

In parallel, the Israeli army has issued a new evacuation order in central Gaza, at several points in the city of Deir al-Balah, and has demanded that civilians leave "immediately." Curiously, this is one of the few areas where most buildings are still standing and several facilities are functioning. The Israeli army has intervened a few times with ground troops—the last time in October 2023—and there is still a significant presence of international organizations trying to distribute aid. Therefore, the fear of its destruction is greater.

The army spokesman has urged the residents of Deir al-Balah to move south to Al-Mawasi, which is supposedly a safe zone. However, several organizations report that this area is completely overcrowded. This is not surprising considering that 90% of Gaza's population has been forcibly displaced and that 86% of the enclave's territory is currently under Israeli evacuation orders or designated as a military zone.