Israeli forces opened fire on starving Palestinians scrambling for food aid across Gaza on Sunday, killing 93 civilians and wounding hundreds more. In the north, tank shells and sniper fire targeted crowds near Gaza City as a World Food Programme convoy arrived, killing 80. Near Rafah, 9 more were shot dead at an aid distribution point a site where 36 were slaughtered just 24 hours earlier. In Khan Younis, 4 others perished. Survivor Qasem Abu Khater described scenes of "deadly overcrowding," with Israeli troops firing "as if hunting animals in a forest". The UN confirms at least 798 aid-seekers have been killed since late May, primarily at sites run by Israel’s controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The attacks expose Israel’s systematic strategy of weaponizing hunger. With 2.3 million Gazans facing famine, Israel has restricted aid to a trickle while militarizing distribution. The GHF, staffed by U.S. mercenaries and imposed to replace UN agencies forces Palestinians to navigate lethal "safe routes" only to face execution at checkpoints. The UN reports 615 killings at GHF sites alone, where food access requires navigating sniper alleys and chaotic queues. Doctors at Gaza’s last functioning hospitals describe infants sharing incubators amid fuel shortages, while Israel blocks fuel shipments for 130 days.
Twenty-five nations, including Britain and France, demanded an immediate end to the genocide, citing Israel’s "inhumane killing of civilians seeking food and water". Belgium initiated war crimes investigations against Israeli soldiers, while the EU drafted sanctions options including suspending trade deals and visa-free travel for Israelis. The U.S.-sanctioned UN expert Francesca Albanese condemned the violence: "Punishing those speaking for the powerless is a sign of guilt". Meanwhile, Western media faces scrutiny for complicity: The New York Times was accused of being an "accomplice to genocide" for censoring the term "occupation" and employing journalists with ties to the Israeli military.
As diplomacy falters, Israel escalated ethnic cleansing. On Sunday, families in Deir el-Balah were ordered to evacuate immediately, fleeing with donkeys carrying minimal belongings. "We have no shelter, no hope," one displaced father told reporters. Though negotiations continue for a 60-day truce and hostage exchange, Israel’s demands including Hamas’s dissolution and control of aid remain unacceptable to Palestinians. With 49 hostages still held (27 confirmed dead) and Gaza’s death toll nearing 59,000, the cycle of starvation and slaughter persists.