23 Palestinians killed as Israeli airstrike targets aid distribution workers in Gaza City

ISTANBUL (AA) - At least 23 Palestinians were killed and several others injured late Tuesday in an Israeli airstrike targeting a gathering of people at the Kuwait Roundabout in Gaza City.

Witnesses reported that Israeli warplanes targeted a gathering of committees formed to facilitate the transportation of aid to Gaza City, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Local sources said a significant number of dead and injured were lying on the ground at site after being directly targeted, according to the agency.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023 which killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 31,800 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in the enclave, and nearly 74,000 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Istanbul