Israeli attacks have killed at least 34 Palestinians across Gaza, medical sources told Al Jazeera, as a key hospital in the south of the besieged enclave said it was inaccessible amid ongoing Israeli military operations.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said on Saturday that al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis was “no longer accessible” after Israeli forces designated the surrounding area a “dangerous combat zone” and ordered evacuations.
“There are many patients and medical staff in the hospital,” the group said in a statement, urging international organisations to intervene, provide protection for medical sites, and open safe corridors for aid and medical supplies.
The plea comes as medical sources told Al Jazeera that 34 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Saturday, including eight who were killed in a shooting incident near an aid distribution site west of Rafah in southern Gaza.
Palestinians in Gaza have gathered at al-Alam roundabout near Rafah almost daily since late May to collect humanitarian aid, at a centre about 1km (0.6 miles) away, operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Samir Abu Hadid, who was there early Saturday, told the AFP news agency that thousands of people had gathered near the roundabout.
“As soon as some people tried to advance towards the aid centre, the Israeli occupation forces opened fire from armoured vehicles stationed near the centre, firing into the air and then at civilians,” Abu Hadid said.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
The GHF had said on Friday that its aid centres would remain closed until further notice due to security concerns, just days after several deadly incidents near its aid hubs.
“Operations at our distribution points have been paused until further notice,” a spokesperson for the GHF said on Friday, despite warnings from humanitarian agencies that the territory is on the brink of famine.
Israel last month partially lifted a total blockade on humanitarian supplies entering Gaza that had been in effect since March 2, but rights groups and the United Nations have warned that only a trickle of aid has been allowed into the territory.
The UN, which has refused to cooperate with the GHF over neutrality concerns, has warned that Gaza’s entire population of more than two million people was at risk of starvation.
In Israel, Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that the military had recovered the remains of Thai national Nattapong Pinta from Rafah, southern Gaza.
Pinta, an agricultural worker, was seized during the Hamas-led assault on October 7, 2023, from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Israeli officials said he had been held by the Mujahideen Brigades, a Palestinian armed group.
His remains were found alongside those of two Israeli American captives retrieved earlier in the week. Pinta’s family in Thailand has been notified.
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