UN documents killings of 613 Palestinians near aid distribution centers in Gaza

GAZA, July 04 (YPA) -The UN human rights office said Friday it has recorded 613 killings in Gaza near humanitarian convoys and at aid distribution points run by an Israeli-backed American organization since it first began operations in late May.

Ravina Shamdasani, the spokesperson for (OHCHR) said the rights office was not able to attribute responsibility for the killings. But she said “it is clear that the Israeli military has shelled and shot at Palestinians trying to reach the distribution points” operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

In a message to The Associated Press, Shamdasani said that of the total tallied, 509 killings were “GHF-related,” meaning at or near its distribution sites.

“Information keeps coming in,” she added. “This is ongoing and it is unacceptable.”

In an earlier press briefing, Shamdasani stated that the killings had been recorded at sites belonging to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and near aid convoys. However, she later clarified to the Associated Press that the incidents involving the foundation occurred “at or near its distribution points.”

Shamdasani stated that the death toll is based on data collected by the UN Human Rights Office, which t follows a rigorous method and relies in part on information from hospitals that received the victims’ bodies.

@E.Y.M