Jakarta. The UN World Food Program has accused Israel of using tanks, snipers, and other weapons to fire on Palestinians trying to reach food aid in northern Gaza, in what Gaza’s Health Ministry described as one of the deadliest days for aid-seekers since the war began.

At least 80 people were killed in the incident, according to the Health Ministry, while the Israeli military said it fired warning shots to address an “immediate threat” and questioned the reported death toll.

The WFP statement on Sunday condemned the violence that broke out as Palestinians surrounded a 25-truck aid convoy, saying the crowd “came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers, and other gunfire.” The agency did not confirm a death count, saying only that “countless lives” were lost.

“These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation,” the agency said, adding that the attack occurred despite Israeli assurances that aid delivery would improve and that armed forces would not engage along aid routes. The WFP urged that “shootings near humanitarian missions, convoys, and food distributions must stop immediately.”

The incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions for Palestinians seeking food and aid in Gaza, as the war, now in its 21st month, continues without a breakthrough in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas. The death toll in Gaza has surpassed 59,000, according to the Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants but reports that more than half of the victims are women and children.

Witnesses and a UN official said Israeli forces opened fire as the crowd gathered around the aid convoy on Sunday. A photographer working with the AP counted 31 bodies at Shifa Hospital and 20 more at Sheikh Radwan clinic in Gaza City.

The Israeli military declined to comment on the WFP’s claims. Military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani posted on social media that troops were ordered “do not engage, do not shoot,” sharing a video showing a soldier shouting “Do not shoot!” as Palestinians gathered near a truck. The AP could not verify the video or confirm its location.

Aid distribution in Gaza has become increasingly perilous, with US- and Israeli-backed systems facing violence as Palestinians attempting to reach aid sites come under fire. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has reported that most violence has not occurred directly at its distribution sites.

Meanwhile, Gaza health officials reported at least 13 deaths, including children, in Israeli strikes since Sunday night. Two people were killed Monday when crowds waiting for aid were shot at near the Netzarim corridor, while an overnight strike on a tent in Khan Younis killed five people, including two children.

The Israeli military has not commented on the strikes, but it blames Hamas for civilian casualties due to the group’s operations in populated areas.

The war was triggered when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, with around 50 still believed to be in Gaza.

Elsewhere, Israel struck Houthi rebel positions at Yemen’s Hodeidah port on Monday, accusing the Iran-backed group of using the port to receive weapons and launch attacks on Israel in solidarity with Palestinians.

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