Photo from (mohanedqeshta on Telegram)
Thousands of desperate Palestinians have swarmed an aid distribution site in Rafah, southern Gaza, as security contractors lose control of the crowds and open fire with live ammunition.
The incident comes after the Israeli-backed plan to disperse humanitarian assistance opened the centre earlier.
The controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was tasked by Israel and the United States to take over the distribution of aid, as the UN and other international bodies were banned by Israel from doing so.
Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, says there was “complete chaos” as Palestinians in southern Gaza rushed to receive some of the first aid that entered the besieged territory in months.
Khoudary said that after the first Palestinians returned back to their shelters with some food parcels, more people started heading towards the aid distribution point in the south.
“The forces that were present in that area were shooting live ammunition to disperse the Palestinians who were going to receive the food,” Khoudary said.
She added that what needs be underlined is that after months of a total blockade, Palestinians are “very desperate”.
“They are not having any food and this is the only way to feed their children.”
