Palestinians run along a street as humanitarian aid is airdropped in Gaza City on 1 March 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Hamas militant group. Photo: AFP
By Christy Cooney for the BBC
Many of the people treated for injuries following a rush on an aid convoy in Gaza on Thursday suffered gunshot wounds, the UN has said.
UN observers visited Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital and saw some of the roughly 200 people still being treated.
Hamas, which governs Gaza, has accused Israel of firing at civilians, but Israel said most died in a stampede after its troops fired warning shots.
Leaders around the world have called for a full investigation.
The incident unfolded after hundreds of people descended on an aid convoy as it moved along a coastal road, accompanied by the Israeli military, in the early hours of Thursday morning.
The World Food Programme has warned that a famine is imminent in northern Gaza, which has received very little aid in recent weeks, and where an estimated 300,000 people are living with little food or clean water.
In footage from the scene, volleys of gunfire can be heard and people are seen scrambling over lorries and ducking behind the vehicles.
Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry has said that at least 112 people were killed in the incident and that another 760 were injured.
In a statement on social media, Danial Hagari, spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), said, "Dozens of Gazans were injured as a result of pushing and trampling."
Lt Col Peter Lerner also told Channel 4 News that a "mob stormed the convoy" and that Israeli troops "cautiously [tried] to disperse the mob with a few warning shots".
Mark Regev, special adviser to the Israeli prime minister, had earlier told CNN that Israel had not been involved directly in any way and that the gunfire had come from "Palestinian armed groups", though he did not provide evidence.
On Friday, Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for UN chief António Guterres, said a UN team had visited al-Shifa Hospital earlier the same day and seen "a large number of gunshot wounds" among the survivors.
He said he was not aware of the team having examined the bodies of any of the people who were killed.
![EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / People mourn following an early morning incident when residents rushed toward aid trucks in Gaza City on February 29, 2024.. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Israeli forces shot dead dozens of people when a crowd rushed towards aid trucks on February 29. Israeli sources confirmed that troops opened fire at Palestinians, with one saying soldiers thought they "posed a threat", and that many died when they were run over by aid trucks. (Photo by AFP) / “The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by - has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [caption content] . Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all your online services and delete it (them) from your servers. If you have been authorized by AFP to distribute it (them) to third parties, please ensure that the same actions are carried out by them. Failure to promptly comply with these instructions will entail liability on your part for any continued or post...](https://media.rnztools.nz/rnz/image/upload/s--v6jhdrBB--/ar_16:10,c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,q_auto,w_1050/v1709358908/4KTXRK9_000_34KD93D_jpg)
People mourn following an early morning incident when residents rushed toward aid trucks in Gaza City on 29 February 2024. Photo: AFP
Dr Mohamed Salha, interim hospital manager at al-Awda hospital, previously told the BBC that al-Awda had received 176 of the injured, of whom 142 had bullet wounds.
He added that the others had suffered broken limbs in the stampede.
Responding to the incident, UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron called the deaths "horrific" and said there "must be an urgent investigation and accountability".
"This must not happen again," he said.
He added that the incident could not be separated from the "inadequate aid supplies" entering Gaza and called the current levels "simply unacceptable".
US President Joe Biden announced that the US would begin dropping aid into Gaza by air, saying: "Innocent people got caught in a terrible war, unable to feed their families. We need to do more, and the United States will do more."
Israel military launched a large-scale air and ground campaign to destroy Hamas - which is proscribed as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the UK and others - after its gunmen killed about 1200 people in southern Israel on 7 October and took 253 back to Gaza as hostages.
Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says more than 30,000 people, including 21,000 children and women, have been killed in Gaza since then with some 7000 missing and at least 70,450 injured.
* This story was first published by the BBC.
