The IDF on Friday denied allegations by Hamas that Israeli forces had fired on civilians awaiting aid in Gaza City, saying that soldiers had not used their weapons at any stage of the incident and pointed to Palestinian gunmen as the cause of the casualties.
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The incident took place late on Thursday after the military allowed 31 aid trucks to pass into the Gaza Strip heading toward Gaza City in the territory's north. According to unverified Palestinian reports, at least 40 people waiting for the convoy have been killed in the incident.
3 View gallery Palestinians gathering near aid trucks in Gaza ( Photo: REUTERS/Kosay Al Nemer )
Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry reported at least 21 dead and over 100 injured in the incident.
According to the IDF, Palestinian gunmen, who had arrived at the site earlier, opened fire on the crowd that approached the convoy, aiming to prevent them from looting and gathering near the trucks, resulting in fatalities.
“Approximately one hour before the arrival of the convoy to the humanitarian corridor, armed Palestinians opened fire while Gazan civilians were awaiting the arrival of the aid convoy. As aid trucks were entering, the Palestinian gunmen continued to shoot as the crowd of Gazans began looting the trucks. Additionally, a number of Gazan civilians were run over by the trucks,” the military’s statement read.
The IDF added that an investigation into the incident is currently underway, and said initial reports confirmed military forces in the area didn’t open fire against the crowding Palestinians at any stage.
3 View gallery Gazans crowding near aid truck in the Strip ( Photo: Reuters )
“A review of our operational systems and IDF forces on the ground found that no tank fire, air-strike or gunfire was carried out toward the Gazan civilians at the aid convoy.”
The military emphasized its efforts to continue and support the facilitation of providing humanitarian aid throughout the Strip.
“Hamas terrorists continue to harm Gazan civilians who are seeking food – and Hamas is blaming Israel for it. As a result, on the first Friday of the month of Ramadan, a smear campaign was created with the aim of spreading baseless misinformation for the sake of instigating violence in other arenas,” the military said.
3 View gallery Hamas terrorists in Gaza ( Photo: EPA )
As tensions in Israel rise at the start of the Ramadan month, Hamas holds a great interest in escalating and inciting violence against Jews and Israelis by Palestinians in the West Bank.
This incident isn’t the first time the Gaza-based terror group attempted to blame Israel for the result of tragic deaths of Gazans in the Strip, as back in February it attempted to do the same in a similar incident in which over 100 people were killed in a largescale stampede near Gaza City.