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07/04/2025July 4, 2025More than 600 Palestinians have died near Gaza aid sites since late May, says the UN. Meanwhile, doctors say Gaza’s main hospital is now "one massive trauma ward" as the shootings continue. Follow DW for the latest.
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Israel's military has previously said it fires warning shots to control crowds or at Palestinians who approach its troops.
Image: Saeed M. M. T. Jaras/Anadolu/picture allianceWhat you need to know
The UN human rights office says it has counted more than 600 people killed near aid convoys and food distribution points in Gaza since the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operations in late May.
Most deaths happened at or near GHF sites, with hospital data used to compile the toll.
The UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) said its figure is based on information from hospitals, cemeteries, families, Palestinian health authorities, NGOs and partners on the ground in Gaza.
It said fresh reports keep coming in, and called the situation unacceptable.
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Nasser Hospital has turned into what health workers describe as a massive trauma ward.
Follow below for DW's coverage of developments in the Middle East on Friday, July 4.
07/04/2025July 4, 2025
UN rights office counts 613 Gaza killings near aid outlets
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) says it has recorded more than 600 killings in Gaza near humanitarian convoys and at distribution points run by the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) since it began operating in late May.
Spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said the office could not assign responsibility for the deaths but added, "it is clear that the Israeli military has shelled and shot at Palestinians trying to reach the distribution points" operated by GHF.
"We have recorded 613 killings, both at GHF points and near humanitarian convoys — this is a figure as of June 27. Since then... there have been further incidents," Ravina Shamdasani,
The OHCHR says 509 of the deaths were "GHF-related," meaning they happened at or near its sites.
"Information keeps coming in," Shamdasani said. "This is ongoing and it is unacceptable."
The tally was verified using strict methodology and relied partly on reports from hospitals that receive the dead, Shamdasani said.
The US- and Israel-backed GHF began handing out food packages at the end of May, using a delivery model the UN says is neither impartial nor neutral.
GHF has repeatedly denied that any killings or injuries have happened on its sites, while stressing that casualties in the vicinity of the sites are under Israeli military purview.
Germany echos Israelis, Palestinians calling for ceasefire
https://p.dw.com/p/4wxR1
Skip next section Welcome to our coverage07/04/2025July 4, 2025
Welcome to our coverage
Welcome to our latest coverage of events in and around Israel and the Palestinian territories on Friday, July 4.
The UN human rights office says hundreds of Palestinians have now been killed near humanitarian convoys and aid distribution sites since late May.
It says the same scenes keep repeating as desperate families try to reach basic aid.
Most of these deaths have been recorded around sites run by the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The UN hasn’t pinned formal blame for the deaths, but has said that Israeli forces have shelled and fired near crowds gathering for food.
Stay tuned below for this and more of the latest developments concerning Israel and the crisis in the Middle East:
https://p.dw.com/p/4wxPQ
