Palestinian resistance groups slam US-Israeli-backed Gaza aid centers as ‘death traps’ for hungry

By Mohammed Ragawi and Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - Palestinian resistance factions in a statement on Sunday condemned US-backed aid distribution centers in Gaza as “death traps” targeting starving residents.

They called for legal action against the American- and Israeli-supported Humanitarian Gaza Foundation (GHF), blaming it for the deaths of over 126 Palestinians seeking food.

The statement, published by Hamas, described the aid centers as “illusory” sites witnessing “daily massacres” in full view of the world. The factions accused the foundation of playing a “suspicious intelligence role” and exacerbating the famine caused by Israel’s blockade.

They urged international and Arab legal organizations to pursue the foundation, which they labeled “inhumane.”

They criticized Israel’s aid distribution plan, launched May 27, without UN oversight, as “degrading.” Human rights groups have likened the process—where needy residents pass through barbed-wire cages—to Nazi-era ghettos.

The Palestinian groups called to press Israel and the US to resume aid distribution through UN agencies, particularly UNRWA, citing its legal authority and expertise in serving Gaza’s population.

Israel, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a devastating offensive in Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 54,900 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Aid agencies have warned about the risk of famine among the enclave's more than 2 million inhabitants.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war crimes against civilians in the enclave.