More Than 100 Killed While Seeking Aid In Gaza

At least 112 Palestinians have been killed and 760 injured trying to get desperately needed aid in Gaza, reports say.

Crowds descended on a convoy of lorries on the coastal road South-West of Gaza City, in the presence of Israeli tanks.

Israel’s military say tanks fired warning shots but did not strike the lorries, adding may of the dead were trampled or run over.

Hamas rejected Israel’s account, saying there was “undeniable” evidence of “direct firing at citizens”.

The UN Security Council scheduled a closed-door emergency meeting to discuss the incident, during which Algeria the Arab representative on the body put forward a draft statement blaming Israeli forces for “opening fire”.

While 14 of the council’s 15 members supported the motion, the US blocked it, according to AP news agency, citing Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour, who spoke to reporters afterwards.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the incident, saying “the desperate civilians in Gaza need urgent help, including those in the north where the UN has not been able to deliver aid in more than a week”.

Earlier US President Joe Biden expressed concern the incident would complicate efforts by mediators to broker a temporary ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas while France said “fire by Israeli soldiers against civilians trying to access food” was “unjustifiable”.

Hamas has warned that talks in Qatar to try and secure a new ceasefire along side the release of Israeli hostages it is holding could now be jeopardised.

Israeli aerial footage shows hundreds of people on and around the lorries, while graphic videos posted online show bodies loaded on to emptied aid lorries and a donkey cart.

Thursday’s incident took place shortly after 04:45 (02:45 GMT) at the Nabulsi roundabout, on the South-Western edge of Gaza City.

BBC