from the New York Times
Danger and desperation are clear in imagery near the aid sites. Dozens of Palestinians were killed in at least two instances after Israeli troops opened fire near the sites.
A new Israeli-backed food distribution system in Gaza has repeatedly turned deadly in its first week of operation.
Near one aid site, almost 50 people were killed in two large-scale shootings within the space of just three days, according to health officials in Gaza. In both cases, the Israeli military said its soldiers had opened fire nearby.
While very few videos captured the violence itself, an analysis of videos and satellite imagery by The New York Times showed the chaos that preceded as desperate Gazans sought aid.
In one video, taken at the crack of dawn as one site opened, Palestinians can be seen racing for food boxes before they run out. The video was shared by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the Israeli-backed aid organization that runs the site.
Israel restricts international journalists from reporting in Gaza except on some military embeds, and videos from the new distribution sites are limited.
To assess conditions on the ground, The Times analyzed imagery from multiple sources, including eyewitnesses, the Israeli military, the United Nations and the G.H.F.
The United Nations once ran around 400 sites from which it distributed aid across the enclave. Even then, it had to contend with Israeli restrictions, looting and lawlessness and the extreme difficulty of operating in a war zone.
The aid distributed under the new Israeli-backed system is a trickle after Israel lifted a nearly three month blockade on humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The Israel-based group has only four distribution sites, generally in more remote locations, and it is unclear how many are operational.
The shootings took place near the biggest G.H.F. site, in Rafah, near the Egyptian border.
Israeli officials say the new aid distribution system is intended to prevent the militant group Hamas from seizing food, fuel and other supplies. The United Nations says there is no evidence that Hamas systematically diverted international aid under the previous U.N.-coordinated distribution framework.
The scarcity of the G.H.F. sites and their relative remoteness mean that many people must often make arduous journeys to reach them — at times leaving empty-handed. Aid agencies have criticized the initiative for forcing Gazans to walk across military lines to reach food.
Another G.H.F. video, verified by The Times, shows crowds of people waiting at the Rafah distribution point as armed contractors pace in front of them. “Come back tomorrow,” the crowd is told...
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