UN claims at least 875 killed near Gaza aid points over past six weeks

The UN human-rights office says it has recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks at aid points in Gaza run by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and convoys run by other relief groups, including the United Nations.

The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites, while the remaining 201 were killed on the routes of other aid convoys.

The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing the UN-led system that Israel alleges has allowed Hamas-led terrorists to loot aid shipments intended for civilians.

The GHF, which began distributing food packages in Gaza in late May after Israel lifted an 11-week aid blockade, previously told Reuters that such incidents have not occurred on its sites and accused the UN of misinformation. The GHF did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest UN figures.

“The data we have is based on our own information gathering through various reliable sources, including medical human rights and humanitarian organizations,” Thameen Al-Kheetan, a spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, tells reporters in Geneva. Israel regularly accuses Gazan officials of inflating its death tolls.

The Israeli army previously told Reuters in a statement that it was reviewing recent mass casualties and that it had sought to minimize friction between Palestinians and the IDF by installing fences and signs and opening additional routes. The IDF has repeatedly said that it has fired warning shots at crowds approaching troops but that it is unaware of casualties.