Israel attacks Gaza aid line: 250+ casualties in Khan Younis
Shafaq News/ At least 51 Palestinians were killed and more than 200 wounded—20 of them critically—after Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd waiting for humanitarian aid in Khan Younis on Tuesday morning, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Emergency and intensive care units were overwhelmed as dozens of victims were rushed in, the ministry said, warning that medical teams are operating under severe shortages of life-saving drugs and equipment. It renewed its urgent appeal to international actors for immediate support to replenish emergency medical supplies.
Tuesday's attack brings the death toll to 338 Palestinians, with 2,831 injured since May 27, when a US-Israeli aid distribution initiative began in southern and central Gaza. The program, widely condemned by the United Nations and human rights organizations, has faced criticism for militarizing humanitarian assistance and exploiting vulnerable civilians.
Palestinian media reported intense overnight bombardment across the enclave. In central Gaza, Al-Awda Hospital received two dead and 67 wounded after Israeli forces targeted civilians along Salah al-Din Street in Wadi Gaza.
In western Khan Younis, an Israeli airstrike hit a tent sheltering displaced families near the Kuwaiti Hospital, killing five—including three children—and injuring several others. More strikes hit tents and shelters in Nuseirat camp, Deir al-Balah’s Salah school, and residential homes, leaving multiple casualties and widespread destruction.
Heavy bombardment continued across Gaza City’s eastern neighborhoods and northern Jabalia, where homes were directly targeted. Casualty figures from these areas remain unclear.
Meanwhile, Palestinian armed groups escalated attacks on Israeli forces inside Gaza. Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Tuesday that Hamas fighters detonated an explosive device beneath an Israeli armored personnel carrier, killing one soldier and wounding several others.
The Israeli military confirmed the incident, reporting the death of a Golani Brigade soldier and injuries to four others, including a severely wounded officer. Military Radio later reported that the injury toll had risen to nine.
Israel had also acknowledged the death of a captain and multiple injuries in a separate explosion east of Khan Younis, an attack claimed by Hamas’s armed wing, Al-Qassam Brigades.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s Saraya al-Quds had claimed it ambushed an Israeli unit in northern Khan Younis, noting that a helicopter evacuated casualties from the area.
With these latest incidents, the official Israeli military death toll since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, has risen to 869, including 426 killed since the ground invasion began on October 27. A total of 5,971 soldiers have been wounded, with 2,719 injured during the ground campaign, according to Israeli army figures.
