RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces fired on people as they headed toward an aid distribution site in Gaza on Tuesday. The army said it fired “near a few individual suspects” who left the designated route, approached its forces and ignored warning shots.
The near-daily shootings have occurred after an Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation established aid distribution points inside Israeli military zones, a system it says is designed to circumvent Hamas.
The Israeli military said it “fired to drive away suspects.” The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 27 were killed. In a statement, Israeli army spokesperson Effie Defrin said “the numbers of casualties published by Hamas were exaggerated” but that the incident was being investigated. He said the army is not preventing Palestinia