UN: Nearly 800 Killed Seeking Food Aid in Gaza Since May

Nearly 800 Palestinians have been killed while trying to access food aid in Gaza since late May, according to a UN report released Friday. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) confirmed that 798 civilians have died amid growing desperation, with 615 killed near Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites and 183 along aid convoy routes.

Aid Lines Turn into Danger Zones

The UN blamed these deaths on Israeli military operations and access restrictions. The sites, meant to distribute food, have instead become high-risk zones. In many cases, Israeli forces allegedly opened fire near aid distribution points, triggering chaos and mass casualties.

Despite some relaxation of Israel’s total blockade in May, humanitarian agencies say aid convoys still face severe delays and violence. As a result, food insecurity has reached critical levels, and experts warn Gaza is teetering on the edge of famine.

Read: Six Killed in Gaza as Israeli Strikes Hit School Shelter and Civilians

Situation on the Ground Worsens

Witnesses from southern Gaza described widespread destruction. They reported airstrikes, gunfire, and bulldozing of camps and farmland around Khan Yunis. “It’s like a battlefield everywhere,” one resident told reporters anonymously, fearing retaliation.

Central Gaza’s Al-Awda Hospital confirmed multiple injuries on Friday after Israeli forces reportedly opened fire near another aid point in Nuseirat. The Gaza civil defense agency also said six civilians died in recent Israeli strikes, five of them in a school-turned-shelter in Jabalia.

Humanitarian Workers Targeted

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) condemned an attack that injured two aid workers during a rescue mission. Their vehicles, marked with Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems, came under fire despite prior coordination with authorities. The mission was intended to evacuate an ICRC staff member and family, who remain unaccounted for.

The ICRC stressed that medical and relief workers must be protected under international law. It urged all parties to allow safe humanitarian access and prevent further tragedies tied to aid distribution.

As Gaza’s humanitarian crisis deepens, the growing toll of food aid deaths exposes the urgent need for international intervention and secure relief channels.