Trump-backed Gaza aid sites temporarily close after dozens killed in shootings
WASHINGTON − A Gaza aid group backed by the Trump administration is on the ropes after dozens of Palestinians were shot dead while trying to collect food from its militarized checkpoints, humanitarian officials said.
The group temporarily paused operations on June 4 and said it was talking to Israel's military about safeguarding civilians after a hospital reported the recent deaths of at least 48 people trying to reach an aid site.
The new Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has denied anyone was injured – let alone killed – at the aid sites since they started operations on May 26.
But shooting deaths and injuries have mounted among masses of Palestinians walking to the foundation's distribution points.
Israel's forces "carried out warning fire" around a third of a mile from the Rafah distribution site on June 3, IDF spokesperson Effie Defrin said, "targeting a few individuals who were approaching in a way that posed a security threat."
But the number of deaths and injuries exceeded "a few."
Hospital workers described two shootings near a distribution site in Rafah, in southern Gaza, as "mass casualty" events.
On June 1, medics received 179 wounded people, of whom 21 were dead on arrival, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which operates the field hospital.
Another influx of 184 wounded arrived at the Red Cross field hospital June 3, the ICRC said in a statement; 19 were declared dead on arrival, and eight more died of their wounds not long afterwards.
"Again, all responsive patients said they were trying to reach an assistance distribution site," the ICRC said.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has faced heavy criticism from established aid organizations, who alleged its closeness with Israel and militarized aid model would put civilians in harms way.
With large groups of Palestinians passing by armed Israeli soldiers to collect food, "every day, they're running the risk of a mass shooting," Jeremy Konyndyk, the president of Refugees International, told USA TODAY.
USA TODAY was not able to independently verify the number of people killed and wounded − or who fired the shots.
A Gaza Humanitarian Foundation spokesperson confirmed operations were paused on June 4, adding the group was in discussions with the Israeli Defense Forces about how it could "enhance its security measures beyond the immediate perimeter" of the sites.
While Israel blamed Hamas for the gunshot deaths and injuries, the foundation asked the IDF to "enhance" training for soldiers and "introduce measures that guide foot traffic in a way that minimizes confusion or escalation risks near IDF military perimeters," according to a statement.
In an email a day earlier, the foundation said that although "aid distribution was conducted safely and without incident," the IDF was investigating whether civilians were injured at "an area well beyond" its operating area.
"We recognize the difficult nature of the situation and advise all civilians to remain in the safe corridor when traveling to our distribution sites," the group said.
Konyndyk said the foundation's operating model made mass shootings a 'very predictable risk.'
It 'forces huge crowds of desperately hungry people to pass through IDF security perimeters in order to get to the aid distribution sites,' he said.
Israel completely shut down all aid entering Gaza for nearly three months beginning in early March, accusing Hamas of stealing the supplies. As the international community warned of imminent mass starvation, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation appeared on the scene.
The group touted its distribution sites, with high fences and armed guards, as a way to prevent theft while getting food to Palestinians. Israel has also long accused the United Nations, which previously distributed most of Gaza's aid, of anti-Israel bias.
But distrust of the new group bloomed among aid workers over its ties to Israel. The foundation has also been criticized for opening just four sites throughout the 2 million-person enclave, forcing Palestinians to walk long distances to receive aid.
Israel said militants had opened fire on civilians trying to collect aid on June 1, blaming Hamas for "spreading rumors" and "fake news" that its soldiers were behind the gunfire.
Hamas is "trying bluntly, violently to stop the people of Gaza from reaching those distribution centers," Defrin said in a video statement.
The U.S. has stood behind its ally.
"It is Hamas that continues to terrorize and intimidate those who seek food aid," U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said in a June 2 statement.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the shootings merited an independent investigation. "It is unacceptable that Palestinians are risking their lives for food," he said in a June 2 statement.
More: Chaos and criticism for Trump-backed Gaza aid plan as 47 are injured
Israel dropped its aid blockade in mid-May. Humanitarian organizations say only a trickle of aid has reached its population, which is on the brink of famine.
Israel has accused Hamas of looting aid – a charge refuted by the World Food Program and other aid organizations, which say starving people have raided recently arriving trucks and warehouses amid the mass food shortage.
Israel launched its siege of Gaza after the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, killed 1,200 Israelis. More than 54,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict since, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump-backed Gaza aid sites close after 'mass casualty' shootings
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