Satellite imagery, witness accounts and open source analysis reviewed by The National show a sharp shift in how the Israel and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) is running its aid centres.
What began on 27 May with fenced queues, intense screenings, and segregated entry and exit lanes seems to have devolved into near-total disorder in which crowds surge from every direction. There have been reports of live fire and tank fire at crowds almost every day since the sites have been up and running. At least 60 Palestinians have now been killed at or near the sites.
The UN and every major humanitarian agency operating in Gaza have refused to work with the GHF, arguing that its structure and procedures breach long-standing humanitarian principles. Israel’s army maintains that the centres are essential for getting relief into the territory, yet since the first one opened, the death toll has risen sharply. Palestinian health officials report more than 200 additional casualties, many with bullet wounds to the head or chest, overwhelming the ICRC field hospital and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
Recent high-resolution satellite images confirm that the compounds were built with two main corridors to separate arrivals and departures. Other social media footage shows watchtowers overlooking each site, while makeshift utility poles carry floodlights around sand berms designed to contain crowds.
Layout of one of the controversial US-Israeli aid distribution points in Rafah
Queues to chaos
On the day the site opened, Palestinians were channelled through narrow, fenced lanes and reportedly subjected to biometric screening.
By the early hours of Sunday, June 1, those cordons and queues had vanished. Social media clips show people climbing over the sand berms and rushing at aid pallets from all directions, with no visible crowd management.
In one video geolocated to the southern Rafah centre, a US security contractor mutters “here they come” as the barrier appears to open and the mass surge begins.
Shooting into crowds
Footage from earlier that morning, just before sunrise, shows Palestinians taking cover on bare sand while floodlights from the aid site glare in the background. Five bursts of gunfire ring out in a 16-second clip, and a voice urges people to lie flat.
As dawn breaks, further videos show at least nine bodies sprawled in the sand within minutes, the same utility-pole lighting visible behind them. “People were shot at without warning; chaos broke out,” Ibrahim Abu Taima told The National, saying his cousin was killed and his nephew wounded.
Spotlights at aid distribution centres visible near the site of the shooting on June 1
What we know
About 60 Palestinians have been killed and more than 200 wounded during attempts to retrieve aid from Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites since 27 May. Satellite imagery and verified videos show the sites were originally set up with fenced lanes, sand berms and watchtowers to separate entrants and exits, yet by the early hours of 1 June, those entrances and exits were no longer in use. Footage captures multiple bursts of live fire directed towards civilians near to the collection points. Major aid organisations refuse to work with GHF because its procedures violate humanitarian standards, while the foundation itself has offered no public explanation.
What we don't know
It remains unclear is exactly why the crowd-control system was dismantled, who ordered or carried out the shootings and whether the use of live ammunition was proportionate to any threats from crowds. Precise timelines, independent hospital casualty logs and ballistic forensics are still needed to corroborate witness accounts and determine full accountability.
‘It's an ambush,’ says official
“This is not aid, it’s an ambush,” said Ismail Al Thawabti, director of Gaza’s Government Media Office. “Israel and the US administration are orchestrating massacres under the pretence of humanitarian relief, killing civilians in cold blood without any deterrent.”
Israel’s military insists its troops “did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the aid site”, conceding only that shots were discharged “about 1km away” before the site opened. The claim is hard to reconcile with bullet impacts and bodies filmed metres from the site.
Sunday’s killings were not isolated. On May 27, at the same Rafah centre, mobile phone footage captured at least 14 shots – seven single rounds followed by a burst – as crowds filed through fenced lanes. People ducked and scattered. Across those two days alone, conservative tallies point to more than 50 deaths and 220 injuries. GHF officials have not explained what happened and have declined repeated interview requests.
The combined satellite evidence, front-line footage and witness testimony indicate an operational collapse by design or neglect in safeguarding civilians converging on the GHF hubs. The UN is calling for an independent inquiry and an immediate suspension of operations until safe, transparent procedures are restored.
*Graphics and animations by Nour Hayani
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
RESULT
Bayer Leverkusen 2 Bayern Munich 4
Leverkusen: Alario (9'), Wirtz (89')
Bayern: Coman (27'), Goretzka (42'), Gnabry (45'), Lewandowski (66')
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm kick-off UAE)
Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Cologne (5.30pm)
Mainz v Arminia Bielefeld (5.30pm)
Augsburg v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Bayern Munich (8.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Freiburg (10.30pm)
Sunday
VfB Stuttgart v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Union Berlin v Hertha Berlin (8pm)
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
