Gaza’s health ministry said on Wednesday that at least one Palestinian was killed and 48 were wounded when gunshots were fired on a crowd that overran a new aid distribution site in the war-battered enclave that was set up by an Israeli and US-backed foundation. Chaos erupted as crowds of Palestinians broke through the fences around the distribution site on Tuesday. It was not immediately clear who opened fire, Israeli forces, private contractors or others. Israel has vowed to seize control of Gaza and fight until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed and exiled, and until the militant group returns the remaining 58 hostages seized in the Oct 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war. Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the 2023 attack. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. Israel hits the airport in Yemen’s capital held by Iran-backed rebels Israeli defense minister Israel Katz said Wednesday’s strikes destroyed the last plane used by the Houthi rebels, while the rebel-run al-Masirah TV said they had targeted a plane from the country’s flagship carrier Yemenia. The strikes came after Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired several missiles at Israel in recent days, without causing casualties. The Houthis have targeted Israel throughout the war in Gaza in solidarity with Palestinians. The Houthi missiles have mostly been intercepted, although some have penetrated Israel’s missile defense systems, causing casualties and damage. Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6, destroying the airport’s terminal and leaving its runway riddled with craters. Some flights resumed to Sanaa on May 17.
A controversial new aid distribution system
The distribution hub outside Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah were chaos erupted on Tuesday was opened by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The foundation is taking over the handling of desperately needed aid under a new, US and Israeli-backed system despite concerns raised about the group from the United Nations and the recent resignation of its executive director. The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies. Spokesman says the UN has nothing to do with the new aid system Stephane Dujarric says the United Nations has not nothing to do with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s aid distribution because its plan does not comply with UN humanitarian principles of neutrality, independence and impartiality in delivering aid, which apply from Gaza to Sudan to Myanmar and dozens of other countries. Dujarric said on Tuesday that it is “an arduous process” to coordinate with Israeli authorities to get UN trucks to the loading area to pick up aid, and to determine if roads for the trucks to traverse are safe. “We’re still trying – desperately trying – to deliver aid based on our system that has worked … and it’s very challenging,” he said
