For four agonizing days, Mohammad’s family searched northern Gaza after the 16-year-old vanished during a scramble for food at a distribution point. He had become separated from his uncles amid Israeli gunfire. Clinging to hope, the family believed he might have been detained by the Israeli military until they found his body, mutilated beyond recognition.

The only thing they could identify him by was his father’s electrician work shoes.

'Deliberate killing'

Mohammad’s uncle, Mo, an NHS consultant in the UK originally from Jabalia, described the boy’s death as a “deliberate killing” and likened the scene to a “trap".

“People are completely desperate so they do risk their lives to go and get some food for their families," he told The Guardian. "Then they die. He’s only a little story of thousands of other stories of people like that – just extermination."

According to the UN and Gaza’s Health Ministry, 549 people have been killed and more than 4,066 have been injured while trying to access food aid as of June 25. With Gaza’s death toll surpassing 56,000, aid deliveries remain dangerously obstructed. The collapse of water systems now threatens widespread drought and famine.

For Mo’s family, the tragedies keep mounting. Earlier this year, another 16-year-old nephew was killed after a temporary ceasefire ended in March. Just weeks ago, Mo’s cousin Atif, a 52-year-old father of nine, was killed by a drone strike while fetching water. Mohammad was buried in Jabaliya shortly after his body was found.

'It would be more merciful to die'

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The bombardment continues day and night, Mo said. His family is devastated, starved, and trapped. His mother, having lost relatives and seen her home destroyed, recently told him it would be more merciful if they were wiped out by a nuclear bomb. Mo, who hasn’t seen her in 13 years, now dreads every message, fearing it will bring news of more death.

“We shouldn’t wait until everyone in Gaza is dead. It’s never too late,” he stated. “Something must be done. Nothing is going to stop Israel but action.”

His story echoes the testimonies of aid workers and medics operating in Gaza. “We continue to see people killed at these so-called aid distribution points,” said Rohan Talbot, director of advocacy for Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), speaking recently before UK parliamentarians. “The situation is completely catastrophic."

Talbot and others reported attacks on both civilians and health infrastructure, describing targeted strikes on medics and volunteers. MAP’s volunteer medical teams have shared firsthand accounts with The Guardian of deliberate assaults on hospitals and aid workers.

Mo had intended to join a medical mission to Gaza last year but was barred by Israeli authorities due to his Palestinian ID.

UK MP: 'Heartbreaking reminder' of government inaction

British MP Layla Moran, who is also originally Palestinian, called Mo’s experience a tragic reminder of her constituents’ anger and disillusionment with the UK government’s inaction.

“The government’s continued failure to act decisively in Gaza has allowed the horror to spiral into something unconscionable," she said. "The scale of destruction is unimaginable, and the human cost is something that can never be undone.”

Moran, who first met Mo as a patient, has raised his case in Parliament and continues to push for stronger measures, an end to arms sales to "Israel", cessation of trade with illegal settlements, and formal recognition of the State of Palestine.

Foreign Office calls shootings near aid delivery centres 'appalling'

A Foreign Office spokesperson acknowledged the crisis, saying, “Reports of shootings near aid delivery centres are appalling and highlight the desperate need to get aid into Gaza. Israel must allow partners to operate in line with humanitarian principles and deliver lifesaving aid.”

In May, the UK suspended trade talks with "Israel" in response to its blockade of aid and incendiary calls from Israeli officials to “purify Gaza". Moran welcomed the shift in rhetoric but warned, “We cannot allow history to remember us as silent when our voices could have made a difference."

For Mo, any change has come far too late.

“I think they should be ashamed that they have not used their leverage on Israel until now," he said. "They should be ashamed because they have power to prevent this, not only militarily but also diplomatically.”