Israeli forces kill Palestinians waiting for food near Gaza’s Zikim crossing
For the second day in a row, Israeli forces have killed more than 100 Palestinians in Gaza.
At least 79 Palestinians were killed near the Zikim crossing, where crowds were shot at while waiting for food trucks.
The World Food Programme (WFP) says one of its aid convoys came under fire in northern Gaza earlier today, after a large crowd of civilians gathered in hopes of receiving food assistance. In a statement, the WFP said the convoy of 25 trucks had entered through the Zikim crossing and was headed to areas facing “extreme food insecurity”.
Several of the wounded from the Zikim attacks were taken to al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
WFP says Israeli gunfire at its convoy killed countless people in Zikim
As we’ve been reporting, at least 92 Palestinians were killed at aid sites in Gaza yesterday.
The World Food Programme said on Sunday that shortly after crossing through the northern Zikim crossing into Gaza, its 25-truck convoy encountered large crowds of civilians waiting for food supplies.
“As the convoy approached, the surrounding crowd came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire,” it said on X, adding that the incident resulted in the loss of “countless lives” with many more suffering critical injuries.
“These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This terrible incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are forced to be conducted in Gaza.”
At least 79 Palestinians were reported killed in that incident.
Israeli forces kill 12 in Gaza, including family sheltering in tent
Sources at the Nasser Medical Complex say an Israeli attack has killed five members of the same family who were sheltering in a tent in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis. Another attack killed two others in Jabalia in the north of the Gaza Strip, sources at al-Shifa Hospital said.
At least three people have been killed by Israeli shelling in Deir el-Balah and Bureij camp in central Gaza, sources at Al-Aqsa and Al-Awda hospitals told our colleagues. Al-Shifa Hospital reported that several Palestinians were wounded in a bombardment of an apartment in al-Nasr neighbourhood, west of Gaza City.
Israeli shelling has killed two Palestinians south of Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, Wafa is reporting. Their bodies were taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Israeli forces also fired drones at Palestinians sheltering in a school in Deir el-Balah in central Gaza.
UN says staff to remain in Deir el-Balah despite Israeli evacuation threats
The UN humanitarian agency (OCHA) has described Israel’s latest forced displacement threat as “yet another devastating blow” to Palestinians in Gaza.
According to OCHA, “initial estimates indicate that between 50,000 and 80,000 people” were in the area affected by the threat, with at least 1,000 families fleeing the area already.
“The newly-designated area includes several humanitarian warehouses, four primary health clinics, four medical points, and critical water infrastructure,” OCHA added in a statement. “Any damage to this infrastructure will have life-threatening consequences. UN staff are remaining in Deir al Balah, spread across dozens of premises.”
The UN relocated its aid operations in Gaza to Deir el-Balah in mid-2024, after Israel’s ground invasion of Rafah. In a separate post on social media, the head of OCHA, Tom Fletcher, said the UN will “stay to help” even as Israeli air strikes are “intensifying” in Deir el-Balah.
Just spoken to @_jwhittall, our superb head of @ochaopt.
He’s in Deir el Balah, Gaza, with Israeli airstrikes intensifying. Surrounded by our team, and civilians we stay to help.
Exceptional courage and integrity on humanitarian frontline. They are best of UN.
And all of us.
— Tom Fletcher (@UNReliefChief) July 20, 2025
