Israeli military investigates ‘reports of harm to civilians’ after hundreds killed near Gaza aid sites
That report quoted unnamed IDF soldiers who said they were ordered to shoot at unarmed civilians near aid distribution sites, to drive them away or disperse them.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly rejected the report, calling the allegations “malicious falsehoods”.
The GHF aid system has been condemned by UN agencies, and on Friday UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres branded it “inherently unsafe”. It is intended to bypass the UN as the main supplier of aid to Palestinians. Israel and the US said the system would prevent aid being stolen by Hamas, which the group denies doing.
Within days of GHF operations starting in late May, dozens of Palestinians were killed in separate incidents on 1 and 3 June, sparking international condemnation.
Israel does not allow international news organisations, including the BBC, to send journalists into Gaza.
In its statement on Monday, the IDF said it was reorganising access to the sites and this would include new “fencing” and signposting, including directional and warning signs. This was aimed at “improving the operational response in the area, minimising friction with the population, and ensuring that the aid reaches its intended recipients”, it said.
It also said it had decided to close an aid distribution centre in the Tel al-Sultan area near Rafah in southern Gaza to establish a new one nearby.
BBC – see embedded timeline of deaths of those receiving aid
Of course, consider the outlets – BBC and NPR
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