Human Rights Watch says Israel committing war crimes in alleged killings of Gazans at aid sites
The international NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Friday accused Israel of war crimes and violations of international law because of the killings of people near food aid distribution sites in Gaza -- as well as deprivation of food, aid and other basic services.
There have been several mass casualty events near the four sites run by the U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) since it began operating in late May, HRW said.
In a statement in response to the HRW report, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it allows the GHF "to operate independently" in the distribution of aid and that troops operate "in proximity" to make sure food is delivered in an orderly fashion.”
The HRW's report came as U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visited Gaza on Friday, inspecting food aid delivery.
In previous incidents, the IDF has said that it only fires "warning shots" at crowds and when it feels like its personnel are in danger.
At least 58 people were killed near Zikim aid distribution center on Wednesday, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health, and another 14 were killed near an aid center in Muraj in southern Gaza, local hospital authorities confirmed to ABC News. In response to the Zikim shooting, the IDF said troops fired "warning shots in the area, not directed at the gathering, in response to the threat posed to them."
The Israeli government has also previously claimed that Hamas shoots people waiting in food lines and films the events for propaganda videos. Hamas has denied these claims.
"Israeli forces are not only deliberately starving Palestinian civilians, but they are now gunning them down almost every day as they desperately seek food for their families," Belkis Wille, associate crisis and conflict director at HRW, said in a statement. "U.S.-backed Israeli forces and private contractors have put in place a flawed, militarized aid distribution system that has turned aid distributions into regular bloodbaths."
HRW called on nations to pressure Israel to stop using deadly force as a crowd control method, to lift restrictions on aid entering Gaza and to end the GHF system.
Meanwhile, in its statement, the IDF accused Hamas of starving and endangering the population in order to maintain control over the strip and taking actions "to prevent the success of food distribution in Gaza."
"The IDF stresses that, as part of its operational management of the main access routes to the distribution areas, IDF forces are conducting systematic review processes in order to improve the operational response in the area and minimize, as much as possible, any friction between the civilian population and IDF forces," the statement read, in part. "As part of these efforts, IDF forces have recently worked to reorganize the area by installing new fences, placing signs, opening additional routes, and more."
"Additionally, following reports of civilian casualties near distribution areas, in-depth examinations were conducted by the Southern Command, and the incidents are under review by the authorized bodies within the IDF," the statement continued.
Meanwhile, a hunger crisis is reportedly worsening across Gaza. At least 159 people have died from starvation and malnutrition, including at least 90 children, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, since the war began in the wake of the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack on southern Israel.
Aid slowly resumed entry into Gaza after Israel instituted an 11-week total blockade on all humanitarian supplies entering the strip earlier this year. The blockade caused widespread malnutrition and conditions likely to lead to famine, according to the U.N. and aid groups. Israeli officials have long accused Hamas of stealing aid, which Hamas denies.
Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the idea that Israel is applying a campaign of starvation in Gaza is "a bold-faced lie," adding that "there is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza."
However, a new report on Tuesday from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a global initiative monitoring hunger, said that "the worst-case scenario of famine is playing out in the Gaza Strip," and that "access to food and other essential items and services has plummeted to unprecedented levels."
Additionally, a USAID analysis appeared to undercut some of the assertions about the extent to which Hamas had allegedly stolen humanitarian aid. A presentation reviewed by ABC News, examining more than 150 reported incidents involving the theft or loss of U.S.-funded humanitarian aid in Gaza, showed that the group failed to find any evidence that Hamas engaged in widespread diversion of aid to cause the amount of hunger seen in the strip.
On Friday, Witkoff wrote in a post on X that he and Huckabee spent the previous day meeting with Israeli officials to discuss the humanitarian situation in Gaza
"Today, we spent over five hours inside Gaza -- level setting the facts on the ground, assessing conditions, and meeting with [GHF] and other agencies," Witkoff wrote. "The purpose of the visit was to give [President Donald Trump] a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza."
It came amid Trump's plan to expand aid deliveries to Gaza, although there are no signs the White House is moving away from the GHF.
Hamas senior official Izzat al-Risheq criticized the visit in a statement.
"Witkoff's visit to Gaza is nothing but a publicity stunt aimed at containing the growing outrage over the U.S.-Israeli partnership in starving our people in the Strip," he said. "Witkoff sees in Gaza only what the occupation wants him to see, viewing the ongoing tragedy through a misleading Israeli lens."
ABC News' Will Gretsky and Diaa Ostaz contributed to this report.
