China ‘shocked, seriously’ condemns attacks on aid-seekers in Gaza, says Beijing

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - China on Friday expressed “shock” and “seriously” condemned Thursday's attack on beleaguered Palestinians who were seeking aid in the besieged enclave of Gaza, state media reported.

Beijing expressed “condolences to the victims and sympathy to the injured,” said China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning, commenting on the incident that killed at least 112 on Thursday.

Mao said Beijing “urges involved parties, particularly Israel, to immediately cease fire, protect the safety of civilians, and ensure access to humanitarian aid.”

Israeli forces fired on a crowd of Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid at the Al Nabulsi roundabout on Al Rashid Street, a major coastal road to the west of Gaza City in northern Gaza, leaving at least 112 Palestinians dead and 760 injured on Thursday.

Israel has launched a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian group Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

At least 30,035 Palestinians have since been killed and 70,457 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of 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.