Israel Restricts Access to Humanitarian Aid Sites for Gazans

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The group supported by the U.S. and Israel operating a humanitarian aid location in the Gaza Strip announced the temporary closure of the facility on Wednesday, June 4, 2025. The Israeli military warned that approaching the distribution center was considered a combat zone.

The announcement by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), as reported by Al Jazeera, followed a series of deadly incidents near its operating distribution site, which triggered condemnation from the United Nations. Israeli bombings on Wednesday killed at least 16 people in the Gaza Strip, including 12 in an attack on a tent housing displaced individuals.

On Tuesday, 27 people were killed in southern Gaza as Israeli forces fired near the GHF aid location. The military said the incident is under investigation.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the deaths of people seeking food aid as an unacceptable occurrence. He denounced attacks on civilians as war crimes following a similar incident near the same location on Sunday.

Israel recently eased the blockade on Gaza, but the UN said the entire population in the area remains at risk of starvation.

The GHF said its distribution center would be closed for renovations, reorganization, and efficiency improvements on Wednesday. Operations will resume on Thursday.

The Israeli military, confirming the temporary closure, warned against traveling on the road to the distribution center. The area is considered a combat zone.

The GHF, officially a privately funded entity with non-transparent funding, began operations a week ago. The UN and major aid groups have refused to collaborate with it due to concerns that it is designed to serve Israeli military purposes.

Israeli authorities and the GHF, using contracted U.S. security, have denied allegations that the Israeli military shot civilians rushing to collect aid packages. Food shortages in Gaza have sparked a fresh international call to end the war. However, a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas remains elusive.

At a hospital in southern Gaza, the family of Reem al-Akhras, who was killed in the shooting on Tuesday near the GHF facility, is in deep mourning. "She went to bring us some food, and this is what happened to her," said her son Zain Zidan, tears rolling down his face.

Al-Akhras's husband, Mohamed Zidan, said unarmed people are being killed every day. "This is not humanitarian aid -- it's a trap," he said.

In the past 24 hours, nearly 100 Palestinian residents of Gaza have been killed. Israel attacked a school housing displaced Palestinian families. The attack killed at least 10 people, including children, on Wednesday, according to local health authorities.

Residents said the Israeli military intensified air strikes and tank shelling in several parts of Khan Younis. The attacks came a day after the military distributed leaflets warning residents to leave their homes and head west, saying that forces would engage Hamas and other militants in the area.

Editor's Choice: Why Hasn't Hamas Agreed to Steve Witkoff's Ceasefire Offer?

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News

US-Backed Gaza Aid Suspended After Israel Kills Dozens at Distribution Site

13 menit lalu

Why Hasn't Hamas Agreed to Steve Witkoff's Ceasefire Offer?

3 jam lalu

Chronology of West Bank Escalation: Israeli Forces Ram Hajj Bus, Arrest Civilians

8 jam lalu

3 Israeli Soldiers Killed in Blast in Northern Gaza's Jabalia

1 hari lalu

Israel Plans to Block Flotilla Seeking to Deliver Gaza Aid

1 hari lalu

Activist Greta Thunberg Joins Gaza-Bound Freedom Flotilla to Break Israel's Siege

1 hari lalu

Ex-Biden State Department Spokesman: Israel Has Committed War Crimes in Gaza

1 hari lalu

Palestine Gains Observer State Recognition at ILO After 50 Years

1 hari lalu

UN: Over 40% of Gaza Dialysis Patients Dead Since Israeli Offensive Began

1 hari lalu

Eight Injured in Attack on U.S. Rally for Israeli Captives in Gaza

2 hari lalu