Main events on June 4th
- The Israeli military continued its deadly attacks across the Gaza Strip, including in Jabalia, Deir el-Balah and Khan Younis.
- The United States vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza – the fifth time it has done so in support of Israel since the war broke out.
- Two settler attacks on villages just east of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank wounded dozens of Palestinians.
- In a survey, 93 percent of Palestinian and international NGOs operating in Gaza said their existing aid stores in Gaza are completely or nearly exhausted, as Israel continues to impose severe restrictions on the entry of humanitarian assistance into the Gaza Strip.
‘Death and hunger’: Videos, expert analysis and witnesses point to Israeli gunfire in Gaza aid site shooting
A CNN investigation into a deadly incident near an aid distribution site in southern Gaza on Sunday points to the Israeli military opening fire on crowds of Palestinians as they tried to make their way to the fenced enclosure to get food.
More than a dozen eyewitnesses, including those wounded in the attack, said Israeli troops shot at crowds in volleys of gunfire that occurred sporadically through the early hours of Sunday morning. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the US and Israeli-backed aid initiative that runs the site, said that Israeli forces were operating in the area during the same period.
Multiple videos geolocated by CNN place the gunfire near a roundabout where hundreds of Palestinians had gathered about half a mile (800 meters) away from the militarized aid site in Tel al-Sultan in Rafah. The designated route to the site along the coast, Al-Rasheed Street, is in an area under the Israeli military’s control and Israeli troops operate at a base nearby.
Ameen Khalifa, 30, filmed himself and others taking cover as gunfire erupted near the Al-Alam roundabout on Sunday. One of Khalifa's friends told CNN he went back to the site on Tuesday to collect aid and was killed.
Weapons experts said the rate of gunfire heard in the footage, as well as images of bullets retrieved from victims, were consistent with machine guns used by the Israeli military that can be mounted on tanks. Multiple eyewitnesses said that they saw gunfire emanating from Israeli tanks nearby.
None of the videos definitively show who fired shots outside of the aid camp. However, CNN’s review of audiovisual material sheds fresh light on how the pursuit of aid turned chaotic and then dangerous, on the actions of Israeli forces and the consequences of the new aid mechanism, which has been mired in controversy.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) initially said on Sunday that its forces did not fire at civilians “while they were near or within the aid site.” An Israeli military source later acknowledged that troops had fired “warning shots” at suspects about 1 kilometer (1,093 yards) away.
The Israeli military declined to answer questions about CNN’s findings.
During a press conference on Tuesday, IDF spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said the military investigated and found its troops played no role in any mass casualty event. Defrin said: “This week, it was claimed that the IDF fired at civilians in an aid distribution area. This report is entirely false and echoes the propaganda of the terrorist organization Hamas… Regarding the incident on Sunday – it simply didn’t happen!”
Note: The satellite image was taken on May 30, 2025
