Israel’s obstruction of humanitarian aid has transformed Gaza’s distribution network into a lethal free-for-all, where Palestinians risk sniper fire and stampedes for crumbs of food. UN agencies confirm 1,422 Palestinians killed and 10,067 wounded while seeking aid since May; most shot by Israeli forces near the U.S./Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites. Emaciated civilians, including children, now fight over airdropped pallets as gangs exploit the chaos Israel engineered.
The GHF, established to replace UN agencies operates just four militarized distribution points in Gaza, violating core humanitarian principles. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini condemns it as a "politically motivated system responsible for killing nearly 1,400 starving people." Israel blocks UNRWA’s 6,000 trucks of aid while forcing Palestinians into GHF "kill zones," where snipers shoot crowds under orders to "disperse them even when they pose no threat". Despite Israel’s claims of "warning shots," forensic evidence shows head and chest wounds in victims as young as 13.
Israel’s deliberate famine tactics include blocking land routes where aid workers describe being forced onto routes with active combat, where Israeli soldiers change convoy plans without warning, creating deadly chaos. They also sideline UN expertise. The UNRWA, which fed 1.1 million daily pre-war has been barred since March, while Israel falsely accuses it of aiding Hamas. Lazzarini states this aims to "collectively pressure and punish Palestinians". Economic strangulation is also used by the Israelis. A bag of flour now costs £414 ($530), making food inaccessible even when available. Families survive on boiled leaves, while markets sell looted aid at wartime profiteer prices.
Israeli officials privately admit they "never found proof" of systematic Hamas aid theft; a lie used to justify the blockade. In reality, Israel armed criminal gangs like the "Popular Forces" led by Yasser Abu Shabab, allowing them to loot aid at Kerem Shalom crossing. One humanitarian worker noted: "None of this can happen without tacit Israeli army approval". When Hamas police secured aid during ceasefires, Israel assassinated officers and bombed confiscated aid stockpiles.
The U.S. funds the GHF with $30 million despite its role in mass deaths. During Steve Witkoff’s Gaza visit, he praised the GHF hours after 58 aid-seekers were killed nearby. Trump’s "food centers" proposal ignores that Israel blocks 800+ aid trucks at crossings daily while permitting only dangerous airdrops, a method the UN calls "costly, inefficient, and deadly".
Palestinians organize soup kitchens and clan-led aid protection, but face Israeli airstrikes. As doctor Mohamed Al-Deeb reports, children now "collapse from malnutrition in their sleep." With 93 children dead from starvation and 89,000 facing imminent famine-related death, Gaza’s suffering epitomizes Israel’s genocide, a conclusion now endorsed by Israeli rights groups B’Tselem and PHRI.