Competing narratives have emerged following a series of deadly incidents which reportedly took place in the vicinity of the US-Israeli backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s (GHF) food aid distribution sites in south-west Gaza.
According to accounts from local Hamas-run authorities, as well as eyewitnesses and medical professionals, troops from the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) shot at and killed a number of Palestinians who were seeking to access the GHF sites in recent days.
While shootings were reported near all three GHF hubs in southern Gaza, the heaviest occurred on Sunday and Tuesday at the Flag Roundabout.
The UN has called for an independent investigation into the incidents, reminding Israel that it is required to facilitate humanitarian aid under international law.
EuroVerify takes a look at the facts in order to build up a timeline of what we know.
31 reported casualties on Sunday
On Sunday, 31 Palestinians were reportedly killed by IDF shots as they attempted to access GHF distribution sites, said local Hamas-run authorities.
To reach the GHF’s sites in Rafah, Palestinians must walk for kilometres along a designated route, which the GHF says the Israeli military keeps secure. In statements to the public, GHF has warned people to stay on the road, saying leaving it “represents a great danger.”
Before dawn on Sunday, thousands of Palestinians massed at the Flag Roundabout, which is part of a designated access route, approximately one kilometre northwest of GHF’s distribution hub in the Tel al-Sultan district of Rafah.
By 3am, thousands had gathered and according to Palestinian witnesses, it is around this time that Israeli troops started firing at the crowd with guns, tanks and drones.
NGO Médecins sans Frontières has stated that patients — who said they had been shot by Israeli forces at GHF distribution sites — began to stream into Khan Younis’ Nasser hospital on Sunday morning.
The individuals said they had been shot at by Israeli forces close to GHF distribution sites.
Another international organisation, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), declared that on Sunday, 179 adults and children bearing shrapnel and gunshot wounds arrived at the organisation’s field hospital in Rafah. According to the ICRC, its medical teams declared 21 individuals dead upon arrival.
Israel has denied allegations its forces opened fire on locals queuing for aid in Rafah.
In a post shared on X, the IDF branded such reports “false,” stating that an initial inquiry found that its forces “did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site.”
The GHF told EuroVerify that no incidents occurred at or in the surrounding vicinity of their distribution site on Sunday, adding that there were “no injuries, no fatalities.”
27 reported dead on Tuesday
On Tuesday, Gaza’s health ministry said Israeli forces had shot and killed at least 27 people near the GHF distribution centre.
Civilians were fired at by tanks, drones and helicopters near the Flag Roundabout close to the distribution hub.
Israel denies that such an incident happened and claims that it only fired warning shots at people it suspected were deviating from designated access routes to the GHF centre.
“The troops carried out warning fire and after the suspects failed to retreat, additional shots were directed near individual suspects who advanced toward the troops,” the IDF said in a post on X.
It added that it was aware of reported casualties and that it was investigating the incident.
“IDF troops are not preventing the arrival of Gazan civilians to the humanitarian aid distribution sites,” the IDF said. “The warning shots were fired approximately half a kilometre away from the humanitarian aid distribution site toward several suspects who advanced toward the troops in such a way that posed a threat to them.”
The GHF itself said that the distribution of food was carried out without any issues within its perimeter and that it was aware of the Israeli investigation into the reported injured civilians.
A pause on distribution
On Wednesday, the GHF said it had paused aid distribution and discussing measures to improve civilian safety with the Israeli military, including changes to traffic management and troop training.
The body began distributing aid on 26 May, after a three-month Israeli blockade on aid entering Gaza pushed the population of more than 2 million to the brink of famine.
The GHF system limits food distribution to hubs guarded by armed contractors. Of the three hubs that are open, one is in central Gaza and two are in the far south on the outskirts of the mostly uninhabited southern city of Rafah.
Israel’s ban on international media access to Gaza — which means that journalists must partake in an organised army press tour to enter the territory — has fuelled online speculation and renders independent on the ground verification a major challenge.
