Gaza bleeds through Eid: Israel kills 22 Palestinians in latest strikes

Israeli forces continue killing civilians near aid distribution points amid mounting accusations of using humanitarian sites as military fronts

GAZA, PALESTINE (MNTV) — Israeli forces killed at least 22 Palestinians in a fresh wave of attacks across the besieged territory on Monday. The assaults targeted civilians near aid distribution sites and refugee camps, raising fears that humanitarian spaces are becoming war zones in Israel’s ongoing military campaign.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, 47 bodies were recovered in the last 24 hours, with 388 others wounded in multiple strikes. The death toll in Gaza since October 2023 has now climbed to 54,927, with over 126,615 people injured.

In one of the deadliest incidents of the day, Israeli troops opened fire near an aid distribution point run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) in western Rafah’s Al-Alam area, killing eight people.

GHF is backed by Israeli and U.S. interests, and has recently come under scrutiny. Gaza’s government media office accuses the group of operating as a covert extension of the Israeli military.

Elsewhere, in central Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp, three civilians were killed and nine injured in an Israeli airstrike. Another round of gunfire injured 31 civilians near an Israeli-American aid post in the Netzarim Corridor — a zone previously declared a “humanitarian buffer area”.

The night before, three more people, including two police officers, were killed while on duty in Nuseirat. In the south, a Palestinian was also killed in Abasan town, east of Khan Younis.

Gaza City saw a bloody turn of events as Israeli drones opened fire on a crowded market in the Shejaiya neighborhood. Medics confirmed four deaths from that attack, as well as additional fatalities in the nearby Tuffah and Al-Zaitoun neighborhoods — all densely populated areas with no visible militant infrastructure.

Palestinians had hoped to observe Eid al-Adha, Islam’s second holiest festival, with at least a moment of peace. But this year’s holiday has been marked by grief, displacement, and devastation.

Over the four days of Eid, Israeli bombardments have killed nearly 150 people in Gaza, including many civilians caught in or near supposed humanitarian safe zones.

The targeting of aid seekers has become a horrifying pattern. Over the past two weeks alone, more than 130 Palestinians attempting to access food and medical supplies have been killed, and 1,000 others injured.

Growing evidence and eyewitness reports suggest that areas marked as safe or humanitarian corridors are routinely targeted. This has led to mounting international criticism and accusations that Israel is weaponizing aid as a means of entrapment and control.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has already issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is hearing a genocide case against Israel, filed by South Africa, over its military conduct in Gaza.

Despite growing calls for ceasefire and accountability, the international community remains largely paralyzed, with key Western governments, including the United States, continuing to provide military and diplomatic support to Tel Aviv.

The humanitarian situation in Gaza is now at breaking point. UN agencies have described the territory as the “hungriest place on Earth”, with famine-like conditions spreading rapidly.

Critical infrastructure, including hospitals, has been reduced to rubble. The majority of Gaza’s population — over 2 million people — are now either internally displaced or trapped in increasingly unlivable conditions.

As Gaza’s residents bury their dead and brace for further attacks, the promise of peace seems more distant than ever. The carnage continues even on holy days, offering a stark reminder of the relentless nature of the 21-month-long war.

For Gaza, even Eid has become another chapter in a growing tragedy — one marked not by celebration, but by funerals, mourning, and international silence.