Desperate Palestinians rushing to aid trucks to fetch food in central Gaza were forced to flee after Israeli troops opened fire on them amid the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the enclave.
Footage verified by Al Jazeera shows hundreds of Palestinians in Gaza City, in the central part of the besieged enclave, rushing to receive food delivered by the United Nations in boxes on the back of trucks as bullets are fired.
“Desperate and hungry Palestinians are running out of options. Under fire from Israeli snipers, they are risking their lives to reach one of the few aid trucks entering Gaza City,” said Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza.
A Palestinian who spoke to Al Jazeera said people lack the minimum necessities of life.
“They came here to look for something, at least some flour. People put themselves and their lives in danger for little things for their families. “We are below zero, there is nothing, I assure you that people will die of hunger,” said the Palestinian.
“People now go to the trash to look for something to eat.”
Israeli gunboats fire on Palestinian fishing boats
Footage has also shown how Israeli gunboats opened fire on small Palestinian boats trying to fish off the coast of Gaza while dozens watched from land.
“Under the Israeli blockade [before the war]Palestinians used to be able to fish up to 37 km [23 miles] to the sea, but not anymore,” said Abu Azzoum.
This threatens a vital food source in the enclave where Israel has only allowed in a limited number of aid trucks, which the United Nations says are too few to meet urgent needs.
The UN has warned that widespread famine-like conditions in the Gaza Strip are growing by the day, affecting the majority of the 2.3 million Palestinians who live there.
Desperation is also growing in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, where flour mills have come to a standstill.
“There is no wheat. The price of a bag of wheat today has reached more than 3,000 shekels, or more than $1,000,” said a Palestinian who operates a flour mill in the area.
Israel, which controls the entry points, has refused to allow more aid into Gaza despite international pressure, a United Nations Security Council resolution in December and interim rulings by the International Court of Justice.
His planned ground invasion of Rafah, which he calls Hamas's “last bastion,” only promises to worsen the humanitarian situation.
About 1.4 million Palestinians are in Rafah, where they have been displaced by previous Israeli attacks, some of them multiple times. Hundreds of people have begun fleeing Rafah in recent days as Israel remains steadfast in its promise to attack despite international pressure.
Gantz warns of offensive in Rafah
Talks between Israel and Hamas, brokered by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, have so far failed to reach a ceasefire agreement that also includes an increase in the flow of aid to Gaza.
On Saturday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said progress toward ceasefire negotiations was slowing as Israel prepares to mount an invasion of Rafah.
“The pattern of the last few days is not really very promising, but… we will always remain optimistic and we will always continue to press,” Al Thani, who is also Qatar's foreign minister, said at the Munich Security Conference.
Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz warned Sunday night that if captives held in Gaza are not freed in the coming weeks, Israel will expand its offensive in southern Gaza and advance toward the city of Rafah. More than 100 captives remain in Gaza and talks for their release have so far failed.
Israel has also rejected a three-phase ceasefire proposal by the Hamas group that would allow the release of captives.
“The world should know this, and Hamas leaders should know this: if our hostages are not home by Ramadan, fighting will continue everywhere, including the Rafah area,” said Gantz, a retired military chief of staff. at a conference of American Jewish leaders in Jerusalem on Sunday.
“Hamas has a choice. They can surrender, free the hostages and the civilians in Gaza can celebrate the holiday of Ramadan,” added Gantz, a member of the three-person war cabinet.
