'Israel' targets two aid convoys in Gaza, kills several workers

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
30 Aug 2024 10:01
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Several humanitarian workers have been killed in an Israeli attack against an Anera aid truck, just hours after the IOF opened fire at a WFP convoy.

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A US Army soldier gestures as trucks loaded with humanitarian aid arrive at the U.S.-built floating pier Trident before reaching the beach on the coast of the Gaza Strip, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP)

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) deliberately targeted a humanitarian aid convoy in the Gaza Strip, killing several members of its crew.

The aid convoy that was struck had previously coordinated its route with the IOF under a "deconfliction process" which prevents aid trucks from being bombed, but was then targeted by an Israeli airstrike under claims of its members being "armed assailants".

The truck, coordinated by Anera, a US-based NGO, and approved by the IOF, was carrying life-saving medical supplies and fuel to a Gazan hospital before being targeted. Anera's Palestine country director, Sandra Rasheed, revealed that while one crew member was unharmed, several others were killed in the attack.

"Tragically, several individuals, all employed by the transportation company we work with, were killed in the attack. They were in the first vehicle of the convoy."

The IOF, on the other hand, issued a statement falsely claiming that Resistance fighters seized control of the truck in an attempt to justify the precise target they placed on a vehicle transporting humanitarian aid to Gaza.

A clear pattern shows the intentional attacks the Israeli occupation carries out against relief aid going into Gaza. Just hours before the IOF struck the Anera convoy, occupation soldiers opened fire on a World Food Program (WFP) convoy of two vehicles as they approached an Israeli military checkpoint in Wadi Gaza. The targeted truck was clearly marked with the UN symbol.

While the truck was armored with bullet-proof glass which kept its crew safe, the organization decided to halt operations in Gaza to ensure the safety of its employees.

Cindy McCain, the head of the WFP, slammed the IOF's attack as "totally unacceptable", as well as the "failing" deconfliction system, and said, "This [attacks against aid convoys] cannot go any longer."

The systematic, multifaceted targeting of humanitarian aid in Gaza

"Israel" has notoriously impeded humanitarian aid operations in Gaza, whether by completely blocking routes, targeting humanitarian volunteers, or massacring them.

As of August 7, UNRWA revealed that "Israel" killed 205 of its humanitarian aid workers in Gaza.

In April, a World Central Kitchen aid convoy was targeted and seven of its crew members were massacred. The attack forced the WCK to halt operations in Gaza, leaving vulnerable Palestinians without much-needed aid.

In February, the occupation ceased granting visas to international staff from humanitarian organizations operating in occupied Palestine, hindering the delivery of essential supplies, including food, to Gaza.

In its latest ploy to deprive Gaza's population of necessary aid, the occupation issued new evacuation orders in Deir al-Balah, forcing the United Nation's operations to come to a standstill.

The escalation in evacuation orders has severely disrupted the delivery of critical assistance to the region, exacerbating the already dire humanitarian crisis.