Five aid workers who were killed in Gaza amid the accusation of Hamas’s attack on a humanitarian convoy

Tensions over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza increased further on Wednesday after the aid group supported by the US and Israel accused Hamas militants of attacking the convoy of aid workers near Khan Yunis, killing five and injuring several others.

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a controversial private charity body operating in a war -torn pocket, said one of the buses was “brutally attacked by Hamas” around 10:00 local time when approaching the distribution point of food in South Gaza.

“We are still gathering facts, but what we know is very destroyed: there are at least five deaths, many injuries, and worry that some of our team members might be held hostage,” the group said in a statement.

In follow -up communication, GHF confirmed that the five people killed were Palestinian citizens who were employed as assistance workers by the organization.

“This is a help worker. Humanitarian. Father, brother, son, and friends, who risk their lives every day to help others,” said the foundation, condemning the attack.

The attack added to the growing danger faced by civilians and assistance workers in Gaza when the region struggled with a shortage of extreme food and intensified humanitarian disaster. The distribution of assistance has become more chaotic and deadly, with many Palestinians killed in recent weeks when trying to reach the convoy of aid.

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The Gaza Civil Defense Agency reported that Israeli troops killed 31 people who were waiting for assistance on the same day as the attack on GHF workers. The Israeli military has not responded to a request for comments about the incident.

This situation increasingly flooded Gaza’s health infrastructure that had collapsed. Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat Camp reported four deaths and more than 100 injuries due to the strike of Israeli drones in the crowd gathered near the examination post to receive assistance. At Al-Shifa Gaza City Hospital, the emergency room was flooded with injured aid seekers.

GHF began operating on May 26 in the middle of the installation of international alarm over the condition of starvation, after Israel imposed a total blockade of supplies that entered Gaza for more than two months. Although claiming to have given more than seven million food in the first week, the organization has been under strict supervision. The main humanitarian organization, including the United Nations, has refused to collaborate with GHF, citing concerns about transparency, neutrality, and safety protocol.

The war in Gaza, now in the ninth month, erupted after Hamas on October 7, 2023, an attack on South Israel, which killed 1,219 people – most of the civilians – and 251 were held hostage, according to Israeli officials.

The Israeli military said 54 hostages remained in Gaza, 32 of them were believed to die.

Since then, Israel’s military response has resulted in deaths at least 55,104 people in Gaza, the majority of them are civilians, according to the Ministry of Health managed by Hamas. The United Nations said the numbers of victims were credible and consistent with their own assessment.